Life In A Bottle
by Serac
Summary: I never really thought I had a choice. When I realized I did, well, that's when I knew I could do anything. Sequel to The Dreamer
1. Survivor's Melancholy

_-----Author's note: This is the sequel to my other piece, 'The Dreamer', so if you want to read this, you should probably read the other one, first. And by probably, I mean this piece is going to be pretty confusing to you without you having read the other._

_I last left off with Negi moving to meet Hakase, who he believes can make modifications to the Cassiopeia, allowing him to travel back further in time than normal, so he could stop a couple of deaths from happening. Asakura and Connor, for those with poor memories, such as myself. There you go, the melodrama's all coming back..._

_And while I'm on melodrama, I hope you guys are ready for a melancholy first chapter. That's not how I plan the entire story to be, but the first one is sort of gloomy (Save for one part). Remember, though, people died around the end of the last one! Yeah, now the people who didn't read it are like 'what the hell?'._

_I would like to dedicate this story to:_

_1. Master Masa Random. For being a cool guy, and having good taste in original characters. White Day's gonna rock. No pressure..._

_2. Jennon-Donnon. For writing a couple stories with Connor in them, and for demanding that a certain amount of grammar be right. Keep fighting the good fight._

_3. Fullmetalfan: For being my first solid reviewer, and sticking it out the whole way. A couple of her comments made my day, and had me sit down and write the next chapter. Thanks!_

_4. Ambrant Arandel: Because he read, and even had the heart to review. Getting a compliment from him means a lot, 'cause, come on, look at his stories. He's got range from comedy, drama, romance, to whatever else. Damn his goodness..._

_5. Last, but not least: Raedric. I know he's kind of against a sequel (Look at the review he left for The Dreamer), but still. When I saw that he had put The Dreamer into his C2; Negima: Nothing but quality...that made my day. I never would have admitted it, but I secretly wanted to get in there, so bad! Ha, ha, yeah, I'm the one subscriber! Thanks for that, man._

_Ok, I think I'm ready to start the actual story, now that I've made up time author's note-wise. Here's the disclaimer:_

_I do not own Negima!, but any other characters and ideas are my own. Enjoy...-----_

A certain young boy pulled himself up the ladder to a certain loft, where a certain beautiful girl was waiting for him. Their certain roommate wasn't back yet from her tutoring from a certain older someone, and they certainly weren't hurting for her to show up. With the flick of his wrist, and a touch of magic to go along with it, a certain radio flicked to life, a certain cd spinning off into a certain song through the speakers.

The boy lowered his head onto her lap, and she turned her curious eyes down to him, like she did every night. Every night since the resolution of the complex dream and the voice behind it, the boy came home, turned his foreign music on, and laid down with her before drifting off into restless sleep. In class, he seemed distant, and appeared concerned with everything but the lessons they should be concentrating on.

The girl, herself, wasn't technically a girl. To be as accurate as possible, one would have to consider her an android. Chachamaru Karakuri. While she found that she enjoyed this time of the day, because it allowed for her to be as close with her teacher as possible, she also found that it filled her with a strange emotion she didn't particularly care for. Was it sadness? At not being able to figure out what was wrong with him? Maybe. She knew that he was upset about his assistant returning to Wales, and even Asakura and Mana had recently transferred out of the class and, indeed, the country. Konoka and Setsuna had moved to Kyoto so that the headmaster's granddaughter could receive training in the magical arts, to top everything off. But he would disappear for long stretches of time at any given period, sometimes not being seen for any part of the day but class. Every night, though, he came back to their dorm, played his music, and settled down with her to rest.

The boy, of course, was none other than Negi Springfield. The ten-year-old instructor, mage, and all around youth prodigy, had been left rather distressed by the recent events which had led to the deaths of two of his close friends. It had been a week since Connor's death, but it still wasn't any easier to accept. He swore he wouldn't accept it. When he had the chance to change it, why should he accept it? He'd bring back Asakura, too. He loved her as a student, and cherished her as a close friend. He had been given a gift, not too long ago, and it was with this gift that he planned to fix all of the wrongs that had left a blotch on class 3-A.

Everyday in class, it tore him up inside to see the girl in seat twelve. She was always smiling, chatting with her classmates, and laughing at the jokes they'd throw her way. But he knew that Ku Fei wasn't feeling as good as she'd have everyone believe. She kept on a happy mask through the day, but at night she would visit the pair of graves in the tsuwabuki garden by the old clock tower, where she'd let herself cry, or simply sit in the quiet of the night. Kaede had informed him that she read the letter Connor had left behind every night, before going to bed. It had only been a week, he knew, but she hadn't seemed to have come any closer to accepting what had happened. Well, then again, he wasn't one to be pointing any sort of finger at her.

He could still see her trying to revive him, that night. He had seen a lot of sad, and even horrible, things in his life, but seeing that cut him up inside like he had swallowed a length of barbed wire. Ku Fei was one of his best friends, and she was even a teacher to him. When she hurt, he hurt, too. Maybe that was what was driving him so hard to change things. Maybe what he really wanted was to erase her pain, and give her another chance at happiness. Chao had mentioned fate, that night before he visited Hakase, but he'd gladly challenge even time itself for a shot at fixing fate's mistakes.

Tapping her teacher on the shoulder, Chachamaru continued trying to snap him out of his glazed thinking, "Negi-sensei? Can you hear me?" She asked softly.

Blinking the lost look out of his eyes, he looked back up at her with a weak smile, "Y-Yeah, sorry about that, Chachamaru-san. I've just got a lot on my mind..."

"The Mahora Festival begins in only two days, Negi-sensei. If you continue to push yourself so hard, you will not be able to enjoy it, or maintain your schedule," The robot advised sternly. Her voice maintained the somber tone it always did, though Negi would swear on his life that he could pick out worry somewhere in there.

"Ha, ha, I know!" He laughed a little, rubbing his arm, "I've got lessons to plan, training to do, things to research..."

"What is it you're researching, Negi-sensei? Perhaps I can assist you," Chachamaru offered politely, still gazing down at the boy, whose head was still resting on her lap.

Negi closed his eyes, wondering what he should say next. He was infinitely glad that the headmaster, who was still bedridden from his battle with Evangeline, had allowed for Chachamaru to permanently room with him. Evangeline had no protests, but then again, she hadn't spoken since her tie with the old man. Her robot partner had mixed feelings about staying in the dorm for good. She didn't want her master to feel that she had abandoned her, because that wasn't the case at all, but the cabin was still ruined and the doll master didn't appear to care enough to do anything about it. He came back every night because he got this time with her, which made him feel safe and happy. If she wasn't here, he wondered if he would stop what he was doing to come home at all?

"Negi-sensei?"

Realizing he had lapsed back into deep thought, he apologized before saying, "No, it's something I have to figure out by myself. Thanks, though..."

"Negi-sensei, where is it you go to all day? Some of the others, myself included, are beginning to worry about your well being. You always seem so tired..."

"I appreciate that but, please, don't worry about me, I'm alright! Besides, you all have plenty to do with setting up the haunted house, and all," Negi was aware he hadn't answered the question, and he didn't plan to, either. What he was attempting was dangerous, and he was the only person he was willing to put into immediate danger.

"Does it have anything to do with this song you listen to every night? About the woman who speaks like a baroness, perhaps?" Chachamaru asked, confused. Did he perhaps know the woman who was depicted in the song? ...Why did that make her anxious?

Negi sat up, shaking his head as he motioned for the radio to stop playing, which it did. He forgot that Chachamaru could decipher various languages up in her head, so she could understand the song just as well as he. 'Killer Queen' no longer playing, he covered up beside the robot, who wondered if her teacher was going to say anything at all. It was funny, in a sad sort of way. Ku Fei read that letter every night before going to sleep, but he listened to that song every night before going to sleep, himself.

"Good night, Chachamaru-san," He whispered, scooting up against her as she put an arm around him, lying beside him.

-

"Ooh, that's naughty..." He snickered, pulling her closer, his face tilted down to face hers.

"I remember you say you wonder which one more fun...bad or good..." The girl replied coyly, sliding her finger around his chest in a little circle.

"Mm, but what if you're real good when you're bad? Guess I didn't think of that one, at the time..."

The two were lying front to front on her bed, in her dorm. Both were wishing to lunge in and kiss the other, but drawing it out and just looking at the other made the wait wonderfully difficult, and set both of them ablaze inside. Plus, there was the added thrill that was the potential of being caught. Neither one could guess when their roommate might show up.

He could see the desire burning in her eyes, the need to be held and loved like only he could offer. He laughed a little, and the girl giggled with him. Thinking like that made his heart skip a few beats and his head go light. Or maybe it was because he was pulling her up against him, he couldn't tell. Most likely, it was the blissful combination of the two that made it hard to breathe.

She could see the lust seething in his eyes, the blessed fact that he wanted her so bad he couldn't even see straight. She giggled with pleasure, and he laughed with her. Seeing that in him sucked the air right out of her lungs, like the plummet of a roller-coaster from its highest point. Or maybe it was because he was holding her so close, she wasn't sure. Most likely, it was the perfect combination of the two that kept her face a constant scarlet.

Just being beside each other was a shade of perfect that couldn't be matched by anything else. They didn't have to do anything but lay there together for happiness to rain all over their parade. Thinking about how wonderful this moment was made the girl afraid to lose it, however. She felt her eyes water up a little, and was certain her lip quivered just slightly.

Using the end of his lengthy bandanna, he wiped away her tears, offering her a worried smile as he tilted her chin up so he could see her eye to eye, "Hey, what's the matter? Whatever it is, I'll fix it."

"You...never go away, ok? Promise?" The girl asked, surprised to find her voice near giving out on her.

"It'd take all of heaven and hell to pull me out of your arms, and even then, they'd have to kill me, first. Don't ever worry about something like that..." He tried to reassure her, pulling her completely up against him, his chin resting on the top of her head.

She sniffled, his scent filling her up with the warmth and comfort that she had grown accustomed to while he was with her. "You never leave? Not for anything, anyone, anytime, never?"

"Nothing could distract me from you, and time will never wear away my love for you. Why do you worry so much?" Was the calm, incomplete reply she was given.

"What about...anyone?" She asked, afraid to hear the answer.

"Hey!" A voice cut through their private little world, the dorm room door flipping open.

The man hopped out of the bed, and strode over to the person standing in the doorway, "See you later, Sunshine. I've got plans," Connor called over his shoulder, putting his arm around Asakura and heading out into the hall with her. The paparazzi girl turned to stick her tongue out at the girl on the bed, who reached out for the two as they vanished down the hall.

"W-Wait! Connor, come back!" Ku Fei squeaked after the two, her voice breaking as she started to cry. She tumbled forward off of her bed, hitting her head on the ground as she did. With a broken sob, she pushed herself up, opening her eyes to find Connor on the floor in front of her, bloody and dead. She screamed long and loud, covering her face with her hands to protect herself from what was right in front of her. The shadows beneath her bed shot out to fill up the room, a voice breaking through her cries.

'_You couldn't save him when he was shot with a gun, and you couldn't save him when he was pierced by the blade. It's no small wonder you do not deserve to live in the perfect world,' _The voice stated solemnly, sucking the Chinese girl down into the blackest pit that could be mustered up through any imagination or magic, and rubbing her mind into a blurry mess of sadness and regret.

"Hey! It's ok, hey!" Kaede shook Ku Fei awake, and at first thought the girl was going to throw her arms around her. Instead, she eased her head back down to the ground, breathing in deep the scent of the surrounding flowers.

"You were having a nightmare. It sounded like a bad one," The kunoichi explained, sitting beside her friend, who was lying beside Connor's grave.

"I sorry. I not mean sleep out here, again...Is just..." Ku Fei couldn't find words to explain why she kept falling asleep out here. This was the third night in a row, two of which ended in nightmares.

"It's comforting to be near him, I know," She would never admit that she felt the same way, especially not to Ku Fei. She often found herself out by the graves during the day, when her roommate wasn't around. Why did he have to have kissed her? It confused her and filled her with feelings she didn't want. Not from him.

Ku Fei lifted a hand, which she placed on the front of the gravestone, "Yeah. We go home in few minutes. Just...few minutes."

"Alright," Kaede laid down, herself, and took a good long look at the stars above, "In a few minutes."

-

_The night after their departure for Kyoto..._

"Well...it's certainly...hang on, I'll think of a good word in a minute..."

"Hey! It's...cozy! Yes, cozy! We'll love it here, I'm sure!"

Konoka set her bags down in the center of their dingy little apartment, and basked in the glory that was their new home. All of one room plus a tiny bathroom, it simply screamed 'minimum budget'. The walls were peeling a little bit, and the only thing that separated the kitchen from the living room from the single bedroom were two shoji screens.

"Wouldn't it be simpler to just live with your father at the shrine, Ojou-sama? I'm sure he would prefer that to..." Setsuna's eyes followed a little mouse as it scurried out through a hole in the wall and scampered into another on the other side of the room, "...This," She finished. She had expected Konoka to at least squeak at seeing the mouse, but apparently, she hadn't noticed it at all.

"Oh, don't worry about what daddy wants. I don't want to live in that stuffy shrine, and we're only a twenty minute bike's ride away, from here. Trust me, it'll be great living here together! We'll get jobs together at a café and work ten hour shifts to afford the rent and feed ourselves, and then we'll still have to go to the shrine every day to train, after! We'll probably only get five or six hours of sleep a day, if even that! We'll live the life of the common girl, fighting our way through life, together!" Konoka's eyes were glistening with happiness as she spoke, as though she had just described a perfect life.

After clearing her throat a little, Setsuna spoke up, "But what if we can't make all of our payments, here? It's unreasonable for you to work ten hours a day. Not to mention, we still have to find these jobs..."

"Well, if money becomes a real issue, we could always..." Konoka trailed off, as though Setsuna knew what she was going to say.

Thinking that she did, the guardian let out a sigh of relief, "We could always go and stay with your father. A fine plan, Ojou-sama."

"Actually, I was going to say we could always sell our bodies, but your plan sounds alright, too. I don't really want to move in there, though..." Konoka scooped up her bags, and carried them the five steps over to the 'bedroom'.

Setsuna watched her, mouth agape and mind blank. Selling...what? "O-Ojou-sama, you...you shouldn't say things like that!"

"Relax, I was only kidding, silly! You know, unless I wasn't. Oh, geez, Set-chan, don't look at me like that!" Konoka laughed at the stunned look on her friend's face, and threw her pillow at her.

Setsuna caught the pillow with her face, but the contact seemed to have knocked her out of her stupor, "A-Anyway...don't you think it's suspicious for the landlord to allow two minors to stay in an apartment?" She spoke seriously, grasping the hilt of her sword, "He might be a sexual predator..." The look in her eyes said that she was dead serious.

Konoka shrugged, "Then he can be our pimp. See? It's all working out, Set-chan!"

"Stop with those jokes!" Setsuna shouted, her face blazing red and her mind wallowing through the sordid affairs of the call girl. Not her, and definitely not Konoka!

Laughing, Konoka pulled out one of the two tatami mats they had bought, and laid it out on the floor, "We need to get some sleep, Set-chan. Tomorrow, we start the hunt for jobs! After we settle that mess, then I'll start my training with dad."

"Of course, you're right," Setsuna grabbed her own tatami mat out of her singular bag, and unrolled it out on the opposite side of the room, in what appeared to be the kitchen.

"S-Set-chan, what are you doing way over there?"

"...Sleeping?" Was the weak reply that came from the girl, whose back was facing Konoka as she lay on the mat.

Changing clothes in under fifteen seconds, Konoka spoke up, "Set-chan, I don't want you to sleep way over there! You're not being very nice," She pouted, crossing her arms.

"I...I'm very well situated over here, Ojou-sama. I would come over to where you are, but...uh...this is just the direction I'm used to sleeping in..." She lied feebly, wondering how some people could come up with great lies right on the spot. Wait, lying was never great, she knew that!

A quick shuffling of feet, followed by a tatami mat dropping to the ground beside her, let Setsuna know that Konoka didn't plan on sleeping by herself, even if that meant sleeping on the floor of their tiny kitchen.

_And so, the adventures of Konoka and Setsuna began..._

-

Another day had come and gone, and Negi once again found himself in Hakase's lab, talking with her about the concept of time travel. The girl who, some say, sold her soul to science, had put her other projects on hold to tackle Negi's problem head on. He appreciated that of her beyond what he could express in words, and he hoped she knew that.

"There..." The girl stated, pulling up her face mask and flicking off the tiny torch she had been using seconds ago. "Well, that's it."

Negi looked over her shoulder at the shiny bronze pocket watch, amazed to find that it... "It looks exactly the same!" He exclaimed, ready to topple over in disappointment.

"Hey, something as delicate as this isn't something that I should completely mess with. It's weird to be able to say this, but there wasn't much I could do to make it any better. I mean, yeah, it's a little more efficient in rationing out the magic, so theoretically, you should be able to go further back, but I can't say for certain just how far back, exactly," The science genius wasn't too proud to admit she may or may not have failed. If only she had more time to study it...but they needed to act tomorrow.

"Thanks for everything you did, though, Hakase-san. You even kept my coming here so often a secret, like I asked! You're really a good friend."

"I did it for the science, Negi-sensei! How could I resist finding out how this thing ticked? It's going to be invaluable to my future work..."

"B-But, Hakase-san, remember? When I change the past, it'll be like none of this ever happened...you won't know anything about this at all!" Negi pointed out. She, herself, had told him that.

"Oh, I know, Negi-sensei! That's why I've prepared this, to give to you!" The science master, from seemingly out of nowhere, pulled out a stack of discs, which she thrust into the arms of the teacher, "On these I've compiled all of the data I've gathered over the past week. I want you to take them with you, and give them to me after you solve your problems. Smart, eh?"

"H-Hakase-san...that won't work either, remember? Once I stop them both from dying, it will change the future, which means I'll never have gone back in time to save them, which means I'm gonna...well, disappear, I guess. The me from the past, the one who gets left, won't remember any of this, either! The discs won't exist! You told me that, don't you remember?"

Staring at him blankly for a few seconds, Hakase sighed deeply, crossing the cramped room to sit in her computer chair, "I'd forgotten. Selective memory, I guess...damn, it's like I wasted a week of my life, for nothing!"

"He...Hey! Not really, because you're gonna get the week back, anyway, once I change things. I'll have never come to see you about the watch, after all. Wow, this is more confusing than I thought it would be."

"Ugh, anyway...alright, here's the plan one last time..." Hakase started to recite the plan in a low voice. Tomorrow was show time, and she wanted Negi to be a hundred percent clear on what to do.

_-----Author's other note: I think I've done a pretty good job of setting up this sequel, myself. Especially with Konoka and Setsuna (Unless Negi screws it up by changing the past). If I rolled the yuri way, KonoSetsu fans would be drooling for some lemony action. But I don't, so just imagine what could have been...Well, thanks for reading...-----_


	2. Saved, But Damned

_-----Author's note: Alright, alright, no long-winded note this time. Read and enjoy. For those of you who want to literally see the place Negi's hitting, check out chapter 145 of the manga, it's in there. Yeah, I'm not just making this stuff up (And went a little lax in the description, I noticed it, too)! There are a couple of parts that probably aren't good for the queasy of you, but I toned it down to get away from changing this to an 'M' rating. It's actually pretty docile now, but I just thought I'd point it out so nobody gets mad. Also, there are some slight religious references, so if that kind of thing offends you, avert your eyes. I do not own Negima!, but any other characters and ideas are my own. Enjoy...-----_

He could barely stand up, let alone walk. And walk across that? Was this someone's idea of a joke? The pit below looked like it stretched on down forever, and the wind whipping around him threatened to throw him over the edge of the bridge and down into it. Negi thought back to the lab...

"_With the Mahora Festival coming up, I had done a little research about the World Tree and its glowing..." Hakase spoke loudly, dropping a stack of papers onto the table before her. The steel frame shook as the stack larger than the scientist, herself, smashed down and scattered across the surface. The Cassiopeia bounced up into the air, and Negi snatched it up before it fell._

"_You mean you fell victim to the rumors of your classmates..."_

"_Not at all, Negi-sensei! Don't insult me! Everything can be explained, that's the glory of science! Why, even magic has enough logic to it that it can be broken down into individual processes which, in turn, can be studied and understood. In fact, I think I'll explain your 'mysterious' powers to you, now..." Hakase's hands shot down under the table, and before he was sure where she had fit it all down there, she had pulled out several charts and graphs, coupled with stacks of pages in various different written languages._

"_N-No thanks! I won't remember any of it, anyway, remember? Just tell me again what I need to do to get the power I need for the time traveling to work..."_

"_Like I was saying, then...I did some research about the tree's glowing. The tree builds up magical energy over time, which is why the rare instance of its glowing only ever occurs every 22 years. That's the breaking point after which the magic is released. That's why it glows, and the excess energy in the air is why you'd be able to use the Cassiopeia during this time frame, and only this time frame. It's possible to use the watch outside of this three day long gap, but the amount of raw magic required for it to work is probably way too much for any person to muster up without some kind of natural phenomenon backing them up. The tree, for example," Hakase explained._

_Negi was nodding all the while why the scientist before him spoke._

"_It's lucky that they died at this time, really, because you wouldn't be able to go back and change it if it wasn't for the tree's magic."_

"_I wouldn't call it lucky, Hakase-san."_

"_You know what I mean. Anyway, my research unearthed some interesting facts about the root systems of the tree, which help to channel the flow of magic. Well, you'll see it when you see it, it's not really that important. But you can follow the root systems through the underground tunnels that Chachamaru discovered, and they'll lead you to...what?" She broke off when she noticed the surprised look on Negi's face._

"_You used Chachamaru-san for this? I didn't want to get her involved!"_

"_No, I've known about these tunnels for quite some time, now. You think Chachamaru doesn't serve any purpose to me at all? She's my eyes, ears, legs, and arms outside of the lab. I catch wind of something, I have her check it out for me and compile any data of interest, which she sends to me so I can memorize and archive it. I kept a tight lip, like you asked."_

_Worried he had offended Hakase, Negi quickly apologized and asked her to continue._

"_So you'll make your way down into the underground tunnels, and follow the roots down to directly below the World Tree. You can get down there through a passageway hidden in the Tatsumiya shrine."_

"_Eh? Why would there be a pathway connecting those two places?"_

"_Oh, don't worry. I don't think it had anything to do with that dreamer, the 'messiah'," Hakase scoffed as she said the name, "How unscientific. Can't conquer anything, like that. But the connection seems to have something to do with the demon locked up beneath the shrine, though I haven't yet established the link."_

"_A...demon? Beneath the shrine?" Negi's eyes widened a little._

"_Yeah, that's right. There are actually six places around the World Tree like it, altogether, and they're all undoubtedly connected. I'll eventually figure it out, but it's not something you need to really worry about. You'll follow the roots, blah, blah, blah, and you'll eventually find this place..." Hakase dropped down onto her computer chair, and rolled over to her computer. Her hands dancing across the keyboard like fire on oil, she quickly brought up and printed out a picture, "Fresh from Chachamaru's memory banks..."_

_Negi took hold of the picture, looking it over in awe._

"Being here for real, though, isn't as nice!" He stated, swinging up onto his staff to try and push across the bridge with magic. The World Tree's magic was visible in the shape of a glowing green sphere, hovering in the center of the dome-like structure the boy found himself in. The sheer power of it was pushing him back and kicking up gusts of wind.

"_I've already set the watch to take you back to the day of the rep's party, like you asked. All you're gonna need to do is get into contact with the energy beneath the tree, and push the button. Isn't it beautifully simple?" Hakase asked through a smile, motioning for her teacher to leave, "Now get out of here. Tomorrow the festival starts, and you'll need to be well rested to take care of business, right? Besides, it's not nice to keep Chachamaru waiting..." She added with a mischievous snicker._

Throwing caution to the wind, he poured his strength and will into speeding into the sphere of magic. As he drew closer to the energy, it felt as though his skin was going to peel right off. The wind tried to pull him away, but he resisted it, arm outstretched for his goal. Gritting his teeth, which felt like they were going to be jerked out of his mouth, he pushed the button on the watch in.

-

In a split second, Negi went from nearly melting, to practically freezing. It took a lot of will to pry his eyes open, and he was almost sorry he was capable of it. He was up in the night sky, free falling his way down to the city bellow. After panicking for a few seconds, he managed to get his staff beneath him and stop himself from becoming an unsightly paste mark on the street.

"Wh...Whoa..." He dropped to his knees, doing his best to keep everything down. A sharp stinging pulsating through his hand and wrist caught his attention. He opened his hand to find the Cassiopeia cracked and ruined, little bits of the bronze metal stuck in his hand.

"Oh no, it's broken! I thought Hakase-san had made it stronger...was the World Tree's magic still too much for it to handle, after all?" He began to pick the bits out of his bleeding hand, but quickly stopped when he realized something, "If it broke, then did I really go back far enough?" He looked up at the sky he had just been in, worried to find that it was a clear night, nothing like the night of the rep's party. Ignoring the pain in his hand, he jumped up and rushed off to find out exactly 'when' he was.

He wasn't sure where he was in Mahora, but he recognized the streets, vaguely. Actually...hadn't he just seen these streets?

"Screw you, you pompous luck God, or whatever the hell you are!" A familiar voice rang out into the night, bringing Negi to a shaky stop. He took off in the direction of the voice, calling out for the voice.

Negi ran up to the Tatsumiya shrine, the door closed and quiet winning over the night. He saw the crumpled up fortune on the ground, the one that read _'life expectancy short'_.

"So I really didn't make it back to the rep's party, after all..." He muttered, inspecting the scrap of paper to find that it was, indeed, the fortune he and Ku Fei had seen before they burst into the shrine. "Oh!" He dove behind one of the columns to the temple, ducking down low to hide himself.

From behind the column, he watched Ku Fei and himself come down from the sky on his staff, the two making a landing in front of the shrine. Had Connor really only gotten there a few minutes before them? They had been so close to being a part of the fight against the messiah, after all. He watched as Ku Fei scooped up the scrap of paper, and they both skimmed over it for a few seconds.

'_If we hadn't stopped to do that, would we have gotten there in time? Ah, every second counts, here!' _Negi thought, scratching his head with both hands in frustration. He knew what he was going to do, now, though.

Ku Fei kicked the door to the shrine down, and the past Negi rushed in. He traded words with the swarm of Angels inside, and the Chinese girl and himself were soon engaged in an all out war with the sea of people following the messiah.

Negi couldn't help but cheer himself on as he prepared to rush through the fight and down into the tunnel. A burst of power shook the foundation of the building, sending the Angels sprawling to the ground. He felt his chest swell with pride at seeing himself fight such terrible odds, but had to swallow his self-satisfaction to focus on why he was there.

'_I can't use the instant movement to go through all of these people, so I'll just have to charge through without being seen. If I do get seen by myself, though, that could end up bad for the universe...' _Before he could enter the building, a hand fell to his shoulder from behind, followed by a soft voice.

"Come this way."

He spun around, recognizing the woman before him as none other than Shizuna, "B-But how? You're not supposed to be here! You're supposed to take Ku Fei-san and I down to her room!" Negi squeaked, scanning her carefully to make sure it was really Shizuna.

"Come quickly, there isn't a lot of time left," She spoke, taking hold of his arm and pulling him around to the side of the building.

"Hey, what's going on? I need to get in there!" Negi exclaimed, jerking his arm free.

"I know, but you can't go through there without being seen," The guidance counselor pointed out, dropping to her knees and digging her fingers into a crack in the concrete. Before he could ask what she was doing, she had pulled aside a slab of stone to reveal a hatch in the ground. She jammed a little key into the lock, which clicked loudly as it popped open.

Negi watched her fling the hatch open, then slide down the ladder into the darkness below, "Come on! This is your only chance!" Her voice shot up from below the ground. With a grimace, Negi jumped down after the woman.

He had hardly landed before Shizuna was run-walking through the dark tunnels. The scent of moist dirt practically suffocated him, but he kept following her, "This is the way, right? Why are you taking me there? Why do you even know I'm here?" He asked a flurry of questions.

Without stopping Shizuna answered him, "This is the way. I'm taking you there because that's what mother wants me to do, and I know you're here because she told me you would be."

"Wh-What? That's...That's impossible!"

"Yet here I am, taking you to her as we speak."

"If she knows all of this, then she has to know that she's going to die! Why doesn't she do anything about it?" Negi practically shouted, having to jog to keep up with Shizuna's pace.

"Because she knows that she must die. It...is difficult to accept, but...if this is what she wants..." The guidance counselor seemed to be struggling with her role in all of this. Her voice sounded unsure, and when he caught glimpses of her face, he could make out the worry.

"I don't understand! I thought she had dreams for a new world! All of those people she killed, to become corporeal..."

"They needed to die, so that she could become a part of our world. So that, in the end, she could die, too."

"She would have died without all of their souls, anyway!"

"No, she would have been...Connor called it 'pulled back down into hell'. The two are quite different."

"How can her dying help fulfill her dream?"

"If you put us in the roles of past figures, it's a little easier to understand. We have our Christ, our Pilate, and our Judas. My...betrayal, though, is something she asked of me..."

"That's ridiculous, don't try and match this up with any religion! She's not any kind of God at all, she's a-"

"Does it really matter what she is?" Shizuna asked. She could see the sliver of light from under the wooden door to the messiah's room, coming ever closer, "Connor told me about his world, and its inhabitants. He told me that she was a demon from his world, and I believe him."

"Then why? Why do you follow her so blindly?"

"Because I believe in what she can give. I understand that sometimes...you have to give up everything you have to get something truly worth having..."

"I don't believe that! I'm not going to give up anything for her dream, or her death, or whatever it is she wants!" Negi blew past her, his sight set on the door.

Shizuna turned to go find the other Negi and Ku Fei, and bring them down to the room. If she ran, she'd be able to keep the time-line consistent with the first time she had done this, "You're a good boy, Negi, but you just can't see the big picture," She started up the tunnel, towards the sound of the fighting, "Hurry and save Pilate..."

-

Gun aimed at the messiah's head, sword held down by his side, Connor smirked, "Any profound last words?"

The door to the room flew open, a string of light tearing through the air. Connor and the messiah dove away, but the Angel who had been behind Negi's teaching aid wasn't as lucky. The magic arrow drilled into him, slamming him into the dirt wall, which crunched and crumbled under the force of the attack.

"Ah, he's here..." Connor heard Asakura's voice pass over the fake's lips again, and it made his blood boil. He caught Negi in the corner of his eyes, but paid no attention to him. Dropping his gun, he lunged forward, taking the messiah by surprise.

Negi watched in horror as the messiah, a perfect copy of Asuna, in his eyes, was run through the chest by Connor. The man in black didn't pull his sword back out, though. With all of his strength, he forced the blade through her and into the rough wall behind, pinning her against it, feet dangling a couple of inches from the ground. He covered his ears and screwed his eyes shut as the carbon copy of his greatest friend coughed up a mouthful of blood.

Connor's face was a few inches from her own, his eyes locked in on hers. He was breathing hard, and still clutching onto his sword as though it was his lifeline. He could feel her blood streaming down it, and all over his hands, but he couldn't let go. His legs were shaking, and he thought he was going to throw up. He knew it wasn't her, but it looked so much like her...To his surprise, she slowly lifted her hand, and put it on the side of his face.

"...My...beautiful executioner...thank you..." She whispered, blood dripping from her chin.

"...Thank you? What..." Connor tried to get out his question, but the words seemed to catch in his throat. Her blood was getting all over him, Asakura's...no, it wasn't hers...

He saw her convulse a little, and her eyes became dull and listless. Her head drooped down to her chest.

"Wait! No, where is it?" He asked, grabbing her by the back of the head and tilting her face back up. No response came, "Where is it? Tell me!" He shouted at her.

A pair of hands grabbed him from behind, pulling him away from the dead messiah, "That's enough! She's dead!" Negi shouted, looking everywhere but at the dead girl.

"No! Not yet! Not...yet..." He at first wanted to stomp back over to her and yell at her more, but he couldn't do it. Not with him watching, and not with her looking like that. Looking away, he grabbed his blade's hilt, pulling it free from the wall. The messiah collapsed to the ground, but neither one could bring themselves to watch, or to even touch her.

"What are you doing here, kid?" Connor asked, wiping his sword clean on one of the dead guards.

"I..." Negi wanted to jump up and give him a hug, but at the same time he wanted to run away from him. He had missed him so much after he had died, but now he wasn't sure if he loved him, or if he was afraid of him. A dead body that looked exactly like Asuna just a few feet away wasn't making his thought process any easier.

"Fine, you don't need to talk, anyway. I'll see you in another life, kid," He slid his sword back into its place on his back, and moved for the door.

"Wait! Don't leave!" Negi grabbed the back of his coat, holding on tight.

Connor stopped walking, pulling his collar back up high as he turned to look at the boy teacher, "And why the hell not?"

"Because she loves you!" The boy shouted, standing up and swinging around in front of the man in black, who didn't move.

He tried to laugh, but his throat was raw, and his stomach was still churning. He could feel himself paling in shades, but tried to ignore it, "No, she doesn't. She loves the drama of not knowing where I stand, and the fact that I'm not really a prize anyone can take home. Forget it, kid, I'm gone."

As Connor tried to step past Negi, the boy moved to stay in front of him, and even dared to push him back. A little surprised, the aid stumbled back a step, and was struck in the chest by a strange looking chunk of bronze. He watch it fall to the ground, bouncing once on the bage carpeting.

"I used that to come back in time, for you!" Negi shouted, pointing at his friend, "I broke it, and didn't get back far enough to save Asakura, but I will be damned if I can't even stop your mistakes!"

Connor wasn't sure if he was more surprised at Negi's traveling through time, or his swearing. Time traveling wasn't something he was unfamiliar with, but it wasn't something he had ever been subjected to, or had affect him directly, "And why exactly did you do that?"

"Why?" The boy could feel his eyes starting to water up in frustration, "You died! You died right after you killed her," He pointed to the body on the ground, "And left Ku Fei with nothing! She was out sleeping at your grave! She read that letter you left every night! You can't leave, not when she still needs you, here!"

Connor's eyes were wide, and now he was near certain he was going to throw up, "You...stopped me from dying? I killed her, and then died, and you stopped it from happening?" Negi nodded in return, but didn't speak because he needed a few moments to swallow the lump in his throat, "You took that away from me? The death of a hero, and you...altered history! You're pissing around with fate's design! You can't do that! Oh, God..." Connor fell to his knees, the bubbling in his stomach getting worse, "Now that bastard's gonna show up...I can't deal with him again..."

"What are you talking about?" Negi asked, getting worried.

He caught sight of Asakura's body on the floor a few feet away, and he couldn't hold it in anymore. Still on his knees, he lurched forward and clapped a hand to the ground, throwing up.

"Who's coming?" Negi asked, once Connor stopped to gasp in air.

"Fate's talon...her enforcer...you can't play with life and death like there's no plan to it...I'm not supposed to be alive..."

Negi vanished as the air in the room became distorted, the temperature plummeting into the negative. The light vanished from existence, darkness filling up the space it once occupied. It felt like the room was spinning, but he wasn't even sure he was in a room anymore. He recognized the emotionless voice that broke through the darkness immediately, "The next time you are free, we are going to have a talk, Connor," It said, the spinning slowing down, and the temperature returning to normal. The light slowly returned.

The door swung open, Ku Fei and Negi rushing inside. Shizuna, not seeing anything she hadn't expected, simply turned and walked away. Connor lifted his head, not surprised to find that there was only one Negi in the room. The other one disappeared because the time-line had been changed, and he had never come back to the past. The reason he had even tried had been removed.

The Chinese girl threw her arms around Connor, who could hardly react. There were going to be consequences to Negi's inability to accept things, and he was going to be the one to pay.

_-----Author's note: Have any idea what's going on? I'd be surprised if you did. Actually, I'm going to be borrowing another character from my not fanfiction stories. It is one Connor knows, and for me, at least, it has big sway on the story. They always did have a strained relationship...Anyway, don't worry, I won't be using this new OC indefinitely, but he's going to have a big impact overall, at least with Connor._

_If anyone doesn't like how the time traveling thing worked out, I know, it was tough to write. I thought about it a lot, but I couldn't figure out how to get rid of every inconsistency. Akamatsu...I don't know, his time traveling seemed easier, somehow._

_I don't know when I'll get another chapter up. I'm almost finished with one for Mating Season, but then I don't know what I'm going to do. It was a bad idea for me to try and do two stories at once! By the way, does anyone know what's going on with the PM system and alert system? I haven't gotten a review alert, story update alert, PM, or anything in a long time. Just wondering...Thanks for reading...-----_


	3. The Wanderer

'_Say it...' _Connor forced a smile, but looked away. He was ashamed to admit it, but looking at her was making him upset. He let Ku Fei's voice wash over his troubled mind, but nothing she said was really registering. She seemed so happy, the complete opposite of himself. He couldn't get over the problem Negi had inadvertently thrown at him by stopping his death. God, things would have been easier if he had just been left to rot, six feet under.

Connor, Ku Fei, and Negi were sitting in their favorite beef bowl restaurant, discussing something or other. It may have been trying to convince Connor to stay at Mahora, it may have been what he looked like in pink, hell, it might have been about them skydiving off of the Eiffel Tower. He didn't know, he hadn't been paying attention for the better part of the past half hour.

'_Three words, you can do it. If what he said is true, than maybe she's worth it...' _It was easy to think like that, but whenever he raised his eyes to meet hers, he saw three huge problems staring him back in the face: 1. A certain acquaintance of his was going to be paying him a visit soon, and he didn't know for certain how that was going to affect his life or, quite possibly, his death. 2. He couldn't help but think of Asakura, and the duty he knew he had to carry out. Her soul was out there, somewhere, and he had to find it, and release it from whatever it was being stored in. After a thorough sweep of the Tatsumiya shrine, he had concluded that it wasn't there. 3. The four-and-a-half year gap in their ages was something he couldn't overlook. Sure, in ten years that wouldn't matter, but ten years was, well, ten years away.

'_I think...I'm better off alone...' _He had always been better off alone. The people he let in always seemed to die. It was an unpleasant side effect of being close to him, but it was one he was used to. He knew everyone was going to die, but when he was the cause of it, it seemed so much worse. Was Ku Fei doomed, too? With _him_ coming, it wouldn't surprise Connor in the least..._'Do I care enough to try? Or maybe...do I care enough to leave?' _

"I love you..." He finally opened his mouth and said it, looking up to see what her reaction was. He was surprised to find that there was no one across the table, or even beside him. The restaurant was dead quiet, apparently closing. He turned his attention to the clock up on the wall. It was almost one in the morning. How long he had been sitting there by himself, he didn't know. He hoped he hadn't said anything rude during his thinking. If he had, he honestly didn't remember. Tipping his head to the lazy waitress, who was smoking a cigarette behind the counter, he rose and left the restaurant.

'_Did he just say he loved me?' _She thought, wondering what their kids would look like.

Hands in his pockets as he walked down the dark streets, he knew that it was time. He was alone, and when the Wanderer wanted to talk with you, you had no choice but to listen.

"I'm glad to see you still understand how things work," The cold voice sliced through the cool night air like a knife, a man now walking beside Connor.

This didn't surprise him, not like it used to. He glanced at the man walking with him, his face instantly turning sour.

He appeared to be in his early twenties, but he was far older. His face was without a blemish, his cobalt colored eyes slanted into an emotionless gaze that looked at much more than just the outside of anything it crossed. The man was wearing his familiar open cloak, so blue it was almost black. Beneath it, he wore his usual black pants and shirt. He lifted a hand to brush his long, dirt brown bangs out of his eyes, and turned his disinterested gaze to the one he had come to see, tonight.

"I remember asking you to stop skimming my thoughts," Connor pointed out, not stopping to formally greet his old 'friend'.

The Wanderer paid no attention to this comment. He knew it was true, but it mattered little to him, "You know why I'm here."

With a forced snicker, Connor nodded, "Being all-knowing still how you get your jollies, Serac?"

"Of course."

_-----Author's note: Bet you thought there was no author's note this time, huh? Sorry, just a chapter introduction, first. I'm gonna say straight off, Serac is not me! My name is taken from him, not the other way around. This is NOT a self-insert. Now that I've made that clear, here's the disclaimer: I do not own Negima!, but any other characters and ideas are my own. Enjoy...-----_

With a frustrated look at the clock on her bedside table, Ayaka sat straight up, rubbing her eyes. Whatever it was that Chizuru and Kotaro were up to, they were being damn loud about it. It was past 1:30 in the morning, for God's sake! She hopped out of bed, making her way towards the separate room that the girl with the largest bust in class claimed as her own.

She pounded an angry fist against the door, but was fairly certain she couldn't be heard over the sounds of the music. She understood maybe five of the words the group kept repeating, but that was enough. When she heard a loud moan, that's when she got red in the face and had to back off. After looking to see if Natsumi was awake, which she wasn't, Ayaka crept forward to knock again. Her hand froze up a few inches from the door as another moan permeated through the music.

'_EEEEEWWWW!' _Her mind panicked as she rushed for the door, and abandoned her dorm.

Chizuru flicked off her Boyz II Men cd, 'I'll Make Love To You' dying down. She didn't understand the whole song, but she still liked it. Kotaro's eyes were wide as saucers as he watched her open up the disc tray to her computer, and pull out the game that had been inside.

"Told you the hot coffee scene existed," She giggled, holding out her hand.

Nodding his head a little, Kotaro dropped the five hundred yen into her hand, "No more betting against you..."

Running hard to get away from her incredibly smutty roommate, the rep had made considerable time in getting a safe distance away from that place of debauchery. In her frenzied escape, however, she collided with a tall person as she wrapped around a corner. Both tumbled to the ground.

"I-I'm really sorry, I was just..." Ayaka started to apologize, but when she recognized who she had run into, she quickly relaxed, "Oh, Kaede, it's just you..."

"'Just' me? Nice to be knocked over by you, too, thank you," The kunoichi sighed, pulling herself back up to her feet, "What are you doing out here so late?"

"N-No reason! I just felt like...uh..."

"Going on a late night jog?"

"W-Well, what are YOU doing out here?" Ayaka turned the question around so she didn't have to say what she thought was going on back in her dorm.

Hm...Kaede had two options, at this point. She could tell the rep that Connor had kissed her, then that he knocked her out to keep her away as he marched off to kill the messiah, or she could lie, "I'm going to the baths."

"The baths? They've been closed for hours!"

"Not for someone like me..." The tall girl grinned a little, her eyes barely open, "Want to come with?" She hadn't originally been heading to the baths, but now taking one sounded like a fine idea. Taking a long walk to clear her head had been her plan, at first, but that hot water sounded real good...

"Well..." The rep knew that it was her job to set a good example for her peers, but when she thought about what was happening a wall away from her bed, she quickly surrendered to the suggestion, "Alright, but how are you gonna get us in?"

"Don't worry, it's not a problem," Kaede stated, continuing her walk, only now she had a destination, and someone to talk to.

-

Connor stopped walking in any real direction, and just followed after Serac as he wandered around the city. It would be pointless to try and split apart from his somber company, he would just wind up running into him again when he wound a corner, or he'd find himself trapped in an inclosed area of magic that looped him from one end of the street to the other. It had happened a few times before, he was a little bitter to remember.

"Though you understand that for our talks to reach the conclusions they needed, our walks had to be extended, somewhat," Serac stated plainly, raising his head to watch a moth fly around a street lamp, as they passed it by.

"Stay the hell out of my head."

"It is not a place I wish to be in. We will both have to make do."

"Hmpf, way to take one for Team Destiny. You know it might sound weird, but I almost thought you were gonna give up the life of a lapdog, and live your own life," Connor tried to poke at Serac's chains of servitude, seeing if they were any looser than they had been, the last time he had seen him.

"My life is not my own, just as your life is not your own. You know this, do not pretend you are still in the dark about the way of things," Was the slow reply he got.

"So, what? You here to fix Negi's mistake and bury me?" If Serac wanted him dead, he knew there was nothing he could do to stop it. But he wouldn't make the move without Fate's go ahead, he knew that much.

"There is no such thing as a 'mistake', you know that. Fate overlooks nothing, and she watches you even now, in this world. You will never be more than an actor on her stage, no one will. Do not forget all that you learned of your world, simply because you are in a different one," The moth no longer near enough to be of interest, Serac was now watching the silhouette of a man up in a second story window.

"Then why are you here? If Negi really was supposed to keep me from dying, then what's the problem? That bitch's script is still going full throttle, right?" Connor had turned his eyes to look at the man Serac was gazing at. He could hear a pair of voices rising, and the man was gesturing wildly.

"My ongoing mission is to hold together the seams of Fate's design, so that-"

"So that heaven and hell has a 24/7 reality show to keep them entertained, I know the drill," Connor snapped, cutting Fate's lackey short, "I don't need you to tell me how things are, or what I need to do, or who I need to help, or-"

Serac now took his turn to interrupt, "You may not, but he would appreciate it if I did," He muttered, nodding his head in the direction of the window. A short-lived struggle broke out between the first silhouette and a second, and after a few seconds, one of the men took a blow to the head, and crashed out through the window.

Knowing Serac wouldn't do anything to help the falling man, Connor swung his arm up, a surge of air catching the man and lowered him gently to the ground. He rushed to the man's side, skidding to a stop as he knelt down beside him. The man was bleeding from the side of his head and was unconscious, but it looked like he was going to live. Now relieved to find the man alive, Connor realized he had just used magic in front of a mundane. He looked over to Serac, who was still looking up into the window, "Dammit, what do we do, now?"

"We leave," Serac stated, continuing his walk to nowhere in particular.

"We what?" Connor whisper yelled back at the Wanderer, jumping up and taking a step forward. He didn't think Serac had actually heard him over the sound of a woman and a man screaming at each other from the building above. Then again, if he had even thought it Serac would have heard, "That guy up there saw, though!"

"It doesn't matter," He replied, but didn't stop walking.

With one last look at the man lying on the ground, Connor ran after his companion, who was getting away, "We should at least call an ambulance!" He called after him.

"The woman will."

"What about the other man at the window? Don't you think he saw what I did?"

"He did," Serac replied simply, his tone low and emotionless. A shot rang out, causing Connor to swing around and look back in the direction of the building, "And now it doesn't matter what he saw."

The man in black took a step towards the apartment building, but stopped just as suddenly. Lights were flicking on in nearby buildings, and he could hear the confused buzz of tired people as they got up to see what had happened. With a defeated groan, he kept following Serac, "Who were they?"

"A man, his wife, and her lover. The man on the street is the husband, and the man shot through the head is the lover."

"Did you bring me here to see this? Why else would you come this way?"

"There is a lesson here for you, though you will not understand it for some time. The couple has been married for six years, though the wife has been unfaithful for four of them. She loves both men, and because of her indecisiveness, she now has neither of them."

"I saved the husband! What are you talking about, he's fine!"

"No, he is not. The lover struck him in the head, which is what sent him through the window. He has suffered a cerebral contusion, and is hemorrhaging as we speak. He will lapse into a coma, and die in twenty-one days, all while she holds his hand," Serac stated, sounding bored. He brushed his hair back a little, his eyes wandering around for something interesting to look at.

"Why did you have me save him, then?" Connor yelled, reaching out to grab the cloaked man in front of him. His hand fell through his shoulder, coming through numb and coated in frost. He had forgotten that it was impossible to touch the Wanderer without his consent.

"Because Fate demands it. She kills one man she loves, and then must wait to see if the other man she loves will live or not. During the twenty-one days before his death, she will be brought to a disgraceful trial on the charges of voluntary manslaughter. One week before his death, she will be acquitted of all charges on the grounds of self-defense. She is to spend the next week by his side, with minimal sleep as she struggles with her guilt."

"But why? What good will any of that do?" Connor asked loudly, cradling his numb hand in his jacket, slowly trying to warm it back into feeling.

"Two days after his death, after having thoroughly sunk into her own grief and guilt, she will jump from the top of the office she works at. She will commit suicide," Serac explained, slowing down to let a black cat cross before them.

Connor stopped walking as well, turning around and ready to go back, "I'm not going to let any of that happen! You're a monster for knowing all of this, and not doing a goddamthing about it! You always were a monster," He muttered, starting back towards the building.

"You have not listened to everything, yet," The Wanderer pointed out, watching as the black cat faded into the night.

"What could you possibly tell me that would convince me to let all of that happen?" The teaching aid growled, swinging back around to face the man he couldn't help but hate with his very soul.

"A young girl will witness the suicide, and it will set her life on the path she is meant to follow."

"You mean the path that evil bitch wants her to walk!"

"The girl will become a guidance counselor, eventually advance to a marriage counselor, and will round out her life as a therapist. During this time, she will help countless people improve their lives, and will even save some in the process. Should you choose to intervene and stop the woman's suicide, the people the girl would have eventually saved will have to turn to other sources of help. Some will work, some will not. Some people will kill themselves, some will get divorced and share their children in separate homes, some will become mindless drones, too drugged up on anti-depressants to function. That is the world you are in. Now, will you save one person, or countless?" Serac continued to walk in the opposite direction

"You..." Connor wanted to yell at the man in the blue cloak, but he couldn't. What about the woman who was going to kill herself? What kind of future could she have if he went to her, if he comforted her? Who might she affect? What would become of her?

"She has no future," Serac muttered, not surprised to hear Connor's footsteps behind him. He knew he would follow. That's all he could do.

Kicking a trash can as he passed it by, Connor let his head hang low. After a few minutes of silence between the two, he dropped down onto a bench and propped his face in his hands. Serac sat beside him, willing to wait a few minutes. After all, he had seen this coming.

'_He meant for that to happen...he knew I would save the husband, he knew the wife would shoot the lover, and he knew the wife would eventually kill herself because of it all...it's just like back home,' _He thought bitterly at all of the other times Serac had set him up for decisions that were impossible to make.

"And yet good or evil, moral or immoral, you made your choices in life as you had to," Serac commented on Connor's thoughts, yet again.

"And I didn't like all of them. Still don't," The teaching aid replied, face still in his hands.

"One cannot go through life as though they are the only one who matters. Whether you liked your choices or not, they were not wrong."

"Ha, tell that to my two dead girlfriends. Or, the one...I don't know..."

"Kazumi Asakura...an interesting chapter in your life..."

"Was that an opinion? Well, I'll be damned."

"You won't find it."

"Like hell I won't. I've still got a ways to go before I'm gone, and I've got nothing to do but look. I don't know if she's in some kind of limbo, or whatever the hell else, but I know I'm gonna get her out of it," Connor lifted his face from his hands, leaning back against the bench, legs stretched out in front of him, "I owe her that much."

"Actually, you will not be leaving Mahora for a short while," Serac sounded as though he was going to yawn, but it never came.

"Oh, really? And why's that?"

"Because it is not part of Fate's design. You will stay here."

"Fate can kiss my ass. This puppet's gonna do whatever the hell he wants."

"And that is precisely why you will stay."

"Look, if you're talking about Sunshine...you know, she'll just have to miss me. It sucks, but I've gotta do this."

"I was not speaking of the Chinese girl, though I am sure you will be pleased to be near her. You will stay because you are needed here, by many different people. There are many things that you must do, to insure the continuation of Fate's perfect design," Serac knew there was no such thing as 'perfect', but the word met his needs well.

"Then those people are out of luck," Connor stated, rising to his feet, "Because if her soul isn't here somewhere, I'm gonna cut out and find it somewhere else."

"How brash of you. Connor, I know where her soul is."

"I know. But since you have no intention of telling me, why waste my time asking?"

"Like a train on its tracks, you aren't meant to go anywhere other than where you are meant to. This design applies even to myself, every act, word, and thought. Should you choose to stay and hold together Fate's wills, then I will tell you where to find her soul," Serac stood up, himself, and began walking towards the dormitories. It would take a while for them to get there.

Connor followed after him, a tired grin on his face, "...Do I really have a choice in the matter?"

"You think you do, but I already know you will agree."

"...So what am I supposed to do?"

"If I tell you, you will be unable to do them."

"If I don't know what I'm supposed to do, how can I do it, you head-case?"

"Intentional or not, simply by your being here, you will do the things you must do. After all, it is as fated as the fact that you're going to go to the bathhouse, before you return to the dorm you share," Serac stated calmly.

"Forget that," Connor scoffed, looking over his shoulder as the sound of a car's engine caught his ears, "I'm just gonna go straight to bed, just to spite you."

The car from behind them sped by, kicking up a wave of water and mud, which rained across the two. That which would have connected with Serac fell through him, instead, coming out the other side frozen solid.

"As I said, the bathhouse awaits you."

"Where the hell did that damn puddle come from?" Connor shouted, trying to squeeze out all of the mess from his hair, "And if you say it was fate, or some other mental patient crap, I'm gonna screw up everything and kill myself!"

"Then everything I had led you through up until this moment would be for the purpose of your death. You cannot do anything outside of Fate's design, know that," Serac muttered. He snapped his fingers and vanished.

"God, I hate you so much..." Connor growled, stomping off for the bathhouse.

-

Kaede caught herself with her fingers to her lips for the millionth time, and quickly took them away. She scolded herself inwardly, trying to shake her mind free of the thoughts she was having of him. Connor was meant for Ku Fei, she had to accept it. Maybe what she really needed was something to distract her from thoughts of the pompous teacher's aid. It was going to be a week before the weekend, though, which meant no trip to the mountains for training, until then.

"Are you alright?" Ayaka asked the kunoichi, who gave her a smile and nodded. The two were sitting in the massive expanse of steamy water that composed the bath. Now that they were both in there, alone, they realized that they didn't usually talk to each other all that much. Looking for something that could possibly start a conversation, the class rep asked, "You keep touching your lips...did you do something with them, maybe?"

Kaede did her best to hold back the blush Ayaka's simple sentence had brought on, but it wasn't something she was particularly proficient at.

"Y-You're blushing! Oh my God, did you kiss somebody? Is that what you were out doing?"

"No...It's just...really hot, in here, and...yeah, it's hot," Kaede mumbled, sinking down into the water up to her nose.

"No, no! My, what a surprise! Well, I guess it isn't that much of a surprise, but you got kissed before..." The rep trailed off, a little embarrassed to finish her sentence.

The tall girl opened her mouth a bubbled out a few words that no one could have understood, so Ayaak pulled her up a little so she could hear, "I'm sure Negi-bozu just needs a little more time, don't worry."

"You think?" Ayaka practically squealed, scooting around in a little circle as she started to talk in a hysterical, fast manner.

The door to the bathrooms opened up, and the sound of footsteps could be heard. Kaede and Ayaka quickly ducked down into the water, swimming a safe distance away.

Connor, his head aching from his rendevous with Fate's bastard man-servant, looked at the two towels resting beside the pool-like bath, along with the brushes and soap, "God, that's convenient," He grinned, pulling his dirty clothes off and blasting them clean with a spray of magic. Exhaling deeply, he eased into the blissfully hot water, closing his eyes.

"Oh no! We left our towels over there!" Ayaka whispered to her friend, who was glaring at the figure before them. The blonde turned her attention towards the tall figure, squinting to see through the steam, "Is that...Connor-sensei? Oh my god, it is!" Her voice was rising, though it was unintentional.

Before they could exchange words, Kaede was marching through the water over to their teacher. The rep thought for a moment that she could see the water around the tall girl bubbling as though it were boiling, but that couldn't be...

Connor heard the sound of someone wading through the water, and quickly grabbed one of the towels, wrapping it around his waist as he stood up. "Who's there?" He called out to the quickly approaching figure. He let out a sigh of relief as he saw it was only Kaede. Only Kaede, who was only naked. Only Kaede, who was only naked, and only had a knife in her hand.

"I hope she was keeping that in her hair," Ayaka muttered, grimacing.

"Well, now..." Connor muttered, looking from the pissed look in her eyes to the knife in her hand, to the fact that she was naked. LOTS of naked...his mind went a little blank, but he saw her drop the kunai when she was within a few feet of him.

Ayaka lowered her head and grit her teeth as Kaede slapped Connor across the face so hard it sent shockwaves through the air, and created waves in the bath. The nearly-naked teacher flew out of the bath, skimming the ground for several yards before he landed face-first, sliding into the wall with a bang.

With one last angry glance at the man who had stolen her first kiss, Kaede grabbed the second towel and stomped out of the bath.

Ayaka waited for a few minutes to make sure Connor was actually unconscious before she, herself, exited the bath to get a towel, and beat a hasty retreat.

_-----Author's other note: I hope everybody followed that ok. Serac is, for all intents and purposes: Omniscient. He knows everything that has ever happened, is happening, and ever will happen, because he's tied in so close with Fate, who plans out everything everywhere. That's her job as a, for lack of a better term, goddess. She keeps the game of life rolling in her own design so that the hosts of heaven and hell have something to keep themselves entertained with. Serac's job is to do all of the little things necessary to keep everything clicking like it's 'supposed' to. He's called 'The Wanderer', because before he became Fate's slave, he was always on the move, trying to find someone. He eventually found the person he was looking for, but that's not a story for here. This is probably the most complex thing I will ever write about, so don't worry, this is the worst it'll be. Thanks for bearing with it._

_Now, for a quick recap of what's going on:_

_1. Connor is going to stay at Mahora after all, so he can do the things he's 'supposed' to do, so Serac will come back and tell him where to find Asakura's soul. Serac said he wouldn't find it, so he knows he won't unless he does what he's told, like the good little puppet he is. Remember, these guys have a history together that I'm working with. This is probably a lot more enjoyable for me, than any of you._

_2. No more crazy, philosophical stuff for a while. Now it's time for Connor to do all of the things he's 'meant' to do, which will all involve the many girls of 3-A, and even a guest star role to one of everyone's favorite ocs. No, it's not Serac._

_3. If you find any holes in any of the logic used here, send me a PM saying so. Even the legal terms and medical conditions I used, I looked them up and made sure everything was correct. That's my dedication to you: The reader._

_That's all I can think of, I'm too damn tired to even think straight. Thanks for reading...-----_


	4. That Time Of The Month

_-----Author's note: To see the place Connor visits today, please check chapter 122 of the manga, you can see it in there. I don't know how to accurately describe it, and can't find out what type of structure it is. Yeah, I looked, just came up empty. I apologize for my ineptitude. I do not own Negima!, but any other characters (Save for two, which will be named at the end) and ideas are my own. Enjoy...-----_

"Look, I've been patient with you, haven't I?"

"Well, you've been...some sort of..._variation_ of patient."

A group of young men, veiled in the shadows of a decrepit basement somewhere in the city, conversed over lukewarm cups of coffee. It was a rather forced conversation, as the second party had no desire to be there. The one young man composing the said second party stared back unfeelingly into the eyes of the one he was being bossed around by.

"Don't be a smart-ass. I didn't go through all of the trouble of getting you transferred here just so you could waste my time," The thick voice crawled through the air and into his ears. It sounded as though his throat were coated in a thick mucus he couldn't cough up for the life of him.

"Actually, yeah, you kinda did. It would be a lot quicker if you just up and did it yourself."

"If it were that simple, I wouldn't have asked for your help!"

"You didn't ask. You're blackmailing the hell out of me," Party two pointed out, folding his arms across his chest.

"J-Just shut the hell up, and go do what I brought you here to do. I'm dead serious! If you haven't set everything up by the start of the festival, I won't be blackmailing you anymore, I'll follow through with it. Do you understand?"

"I understand that you think I'm a miracle worker! That only leaves me with one week, left! Not even a whole week, it's four days!"

"Then you'd better get cracking," The blackmailer shooed his displeased underling away.

"Fat-ass," The blackmailed one muttered under his breath, slamming the door shut behind him. He cast a glance at the leather bound book he had clasped in his left hand, shaking his head with a groan as he set off for class.

-

What was that? What was that wonderful feeling? Wait...wait for it...he knew he was going to remember...Oh! He was being kissed! Hm...hang on, he didn't remember volunteering for a kiss. Actually, he had never had a kiss that lasted this long. They were going on, what, fifteen seconds? That's a long kiss. He was still in bed though, wasn't he?

Negi's eyes popped open, and he found himself looking straight up at Chachamaru, whose eyes were about an inch from his own. More importantly than her eyes, however, was the fact that her mouth was over his.

The android, having registered that her teacher was awake, pulled back and hurried down the ladder. She said something about class, and was out the door before Negi could form words. After a few moments of lying there in shock, he managed to bring his head off of his pillow and sit up. He turned to look over at his room, and yelped in surprise at what he saw.

He hopped over the side of the bed, dropping down beside Asuna, who was collapsed on the floor. He shook her by the shoulders as he tried to bring her back to consciousness, "Asuna-san! Asuna-san, are you ok?"

Foaming from the mouth, and her eyes sort of...blank, Asuna only managed a slight gurgle in response. Chachamaru was going to have to take Konoka's bed, for sure. No more loft sharing.

-

"...Could you stop that, maybe?"

"Stop what?"

"...You know...that thing you're doing...with my hand?"

"Holding it?"

Connor tried to wriggle his hand free from Ku Fei's iron, albeit pleasant, grip. The two were on their way to class. Kaede had left before them without a word, which was unusual. She would normally say goodbye, at least. He didn't want to think that it was his fault, but honestly...

"Yeah, that. People are starting to...stare. I mean, I didn't mind you holding onto it all night long, but now everyone can see..."

Ku Fei began to swing her arm up and down as she walked, as if to flaunt the fact that she was holding his hand, "Nope. I never letting go. You leave if I do, so I won't," A wide grin was plastered onto her face as she spoke, and he could pick up a hint of music in her voice. She was in a damn good mood, he had to admit.

"N-No, I won't. I said I wasn't going to leave, and you can believe me!"

"I read letter you left. You say you going to leave, and we never see each other again. Then you do 180 and say you staying! This way, you have no choice. You stay, I stay, we stay!" She beamed a happy smile at Ako as they passed her by on the steps leading to the entrance of the academy.

As they neared the top of the steps, Connor pulled her to a stop, looking down into her beautiful amber eyes, "Hey..." He practically whispered so the nearby Ako couldn't hear, "Do you remember what else I said in the letter?"

"That you a cold-hearted bastard?"

"Yes, but that's not what I meant. Way to kill the moment, Sunshine. I said that I wouldn't see you again, because if I did...I might not be able to leave..." He looked away as he said the last part, wondering just how corny he sounded. Sure, it summed up how he felt pretty accurately, but that didn't make it any less embarrassing to say.

He waited a few seconds for Ku Fei to reply. He took this little bit of uncomfortable silence to fidget with his tacky brown suit, which he wasn't any more fond of than he had ever been. He wanted for her to say something, but she didn't. Expecting a punch in the stomach or a Kaede-esque styled slap in the face, he turned his eyes back to Ku Fei's.

She was staring back up at him with huge watery eyes, a crooked smile on her face as little sparkles seemed to rain down all around her. Her chin was quivering a little, and she had let go of his hand to hold both fists up to her chin, a lot like the quiet book girl did. The cute little flush in her tanned cheeks was subtle, but not so subtle that he didn't notice it.

'_It's the schoolgirl-love-sparkle...to a degree that I've never seen before...Maybe I said something I shouldn't have...considering she isn't REALLY the reason I stayed...dammit...' _That was what was running through his mind as he started to lose himself in her adoring gaze.

Ako cleared her throat from behind him, "Um, what's going on here?"

Connor snapped to attention, saluting the light-haired girl, "Whatever you want, Snow White!"

"Snow...White? I-" The bell began to ring, cutting them short, "Come on, we're late!" She exclaimed, rushing into the academy, Connor right behind her. He slowed to a stop when he realized Ku Fei was still standing on the steps, eyes still huge and happy, little sparkles still filling up the air around her. He must have eaten something funky at the beef bowl, last night...

He stepped over to her, taking her by the hand and pulling her into the building. Ku Fei eased out of her happy moment, taking his hand back into her solid grip, "I still not letting go."

"But you're gonna get me in trouble! Even though student/teacher relationships are among the hottest of all relationships, they're still not allowed! Plus, you can't hold my hand all through class!"

-

Negi, just about ready to wrap up his lesson for the day, sent what must have been the hundredth confused glance over at Connor. He was sitting on the floor beside Ku Fei's desk, his hand clasped firmly in hers. Actually, hardly anyone was paying attention to the lesson at all. They were all staring at the Chinese girl and their embarrassed teacher's aid.

'_God, I hate public displays of affection. ...Wow, I just realized what a stereotype I am,' _He thought dismally, letting his chin sag to his chest.

"Um...A-Anyway..." Negi tried to continue with the lesson, but his own thoughts were elsewhere, as well. He remembered setting Asuna in her chair, and having to prop her up with a book, as she had yet to snap out of her foamy-sleep phase. A phase that was induced by a sudden move by Chachamaru, who was doing her best to avoid eye contact with him. He needed to talk to her about it, and maybe even consult Hakase, the robot's creator. Surely, she would know what was going on.

"Ok!" Sakurako and Haruna both shot up out of their chairs, pointing angry fingers at Ku Fei.

"What the hell's going on here?" Haruna shouted.

"Yeah! I tried to ignore it, but I can't anymore!" The cheerleader exclaimed, finger still aimed at the Chinese girl.

"Uh...G-Girls, we just had an accident...with glue. Yeah..." Connor muttered in response. Surely, with Negi around, they had heard weirder excuses than that, right?

Ku Fei let go of his hand and held both up to show the class, "That not true," She stated simply.

Connor, now free, tried to roll away and put some distance between him and his roommate, but she caught him by the end of his bandanna and pulled him back close, grabbing his hand again. He laughed a little, "Getting kinda possessive, aren't we?"

The bell signaled the end of the period, and within the first fifth of a second of its ringing, he and Ku Fei were swallowed up in a flurry of squealing girls and unpleasant questions. The Chinese girl, still clutching Connor's hand in her own, jumped up out her seat and onto the shoulders of Chao, who nearly buckled under the sudden addition of weight. Connor flailing around in the air behind her, she jumped across the room and ran out into the halls.

Negi watched them go, and then watched as half of the class charged after them in search of scandal and answers. He was glad to see that the student he wanted to speak with, Satome Nakase, was still getting her things together.

"Hakase-san, can I have a quick word with you?" Negi asked politely, making his way over to the science prodigy.

"I'm kinda busy today, Negi-sensei. Could it maybe wait until...sometime next month? I think I could squeeze you in..." Hakase mumbled, grabbing her laptop and moving for the door.

"Er, actually, this is kind of important..." The boy followed after her.

Turning around, an all-knowing gleam in her eyes, the girl asked, "It's about Chachamaru?"

Negi nodded, and Hakase did the same, a little smile finding its way onto her lips, "Ok, come with me, Negi-sensei. Maybe we DO need to have a talk..."

Natsumi brushed past them, muttering an apology as she hurried into the halls and away from the classroom. _'She sounded sad...I hope she's ok...' _He had noticed the depressed look on her face during class, but he had been somewhat distracted by the Ku Fei thing.Negi wanted to hurry after her to see what was wrong, but getting Hakase alone to ask her what was going on with Chachamaru needed to take precedence, he knew. He would see Natsumi, after.

-

"Wait, so...huh?"

"That's what she told me. She's gradually upgrading Chachamaru-san with more and more complex machinery. She said that some of those new pieces help her to store and replicate emotions she observes, so she can be even more humanlike. She now wants to make Chachamaru-san into the perfect android. Almost identically human..."

"And you had this talk with her because the robot...you know, kissed you?"

"Yeah...But does that mean that Chachamaru-san..."

"Damn! Now THAT'S kinky," Connor laughed, lying on his back to watch the clouds passing by overhead.

Like they did nearly every day at lunchtime, Negi and his aid were up on top of the school, enjoying one of the cheap lunches they would get out of the machines on campus. Today's delicacies were a cold ham sandwich for Negi, and a couple of candy bars for the aid. _'Please come back soon, Konoka-san!' _Negi thought sadly, remembering the homemade lunches he had enjoyed, once upon a time...

"Don't talk like that, Connor. I'm sure she's very confused. What's really confusing, though, is where could she possibly have seen real love?" The boy sent an accusatory look in his aid's direction.

"Don't be looking at me like that, kid," He tried to put his hands behind his head, but the weight on one end prevented him from doing so, "You're kind of ruining guy time, Sunshine."

Ku Fei, still hanging on to Connor's hand, turned her attention to Negi, "You think she see love because of us? Negi-bozu, so smart!" She snickered as she grabbed one of the candy bars.

"Not like he's gonna be smarting..."

Negi scrambled away several feet to stay out of Connor's reach, sitting back down. "Hey," He spoke up, realizing that his aid wasn't going to be too dangerous with Ku Fei on his arm. This would be a good time to ask for a favor, "Do you know Natsumi-san?"

"...Who?"

"Um, short, redhead, freckles?"

"Oh! Right, what about her?"

"Did she seem sort of...upset, to you?"

Connor sat up, and Ku Fei with him, "I was a little preoccupied. It's probably just...I don't know, that time of the month, or something."

Ku Fei jabbed him in the ribs, swallowing the mouthful of chocolate she had been working on, "I notice, too. You know what wrong?"

Negi shook his head, "No, but I was hoping that...maybe you could try and find out?"

"Ugh..." Connor gasped for air, Ku Fei having jabbed him again as soon as he started to shake his head no, "W-Why me?"

"I have some things I need to take care of, and you'll be able to ask her during PE today. Besides, I'm sure you can help make her feel better just as well as I could."

"I don't even know this girl! You do i-" He fell over from his sitting position, clutching his side with his free hand, "Stop hitting me! Please!"

"You help Negi-bozu, Connor! He ask nice," Ku Fei grabbed the last candy bar, breaking it in half to share.

"B-But I don't-" He curled up into the fetal position after another thump sounded across the campus. She was striking so fast Negi could barely see her move, "O-OK! I'll figure it out!"

"Uh, thanks...Connor. Or, Ku Fei-san...well, thanks," Negi finished the last of his cold sandwich , and stood up to leave. Connor, somewhat shakily, got up to follow behind the boy, Ku Fei in tow.

"You buy me another snack?"

"No."

Negi cringed as he heard the sound of a fist finding its target, followed by a sharp exhale and wheezing. Connor changed his tune, and Ku Fei wound up with several snacks. _'If anyone can break him, it's her...' _Negi chuckled to himself. _'Poor Connor.'_

-

"Poor Connor-sensei..." Nodoka whispered to her library friends, one on either side of her. They were currently doing their laps around the track, as was the rest of 3-A. PE class was in full swing and it had been for the last twenty minutes.

Yue, without breaking her stride, glanced over at her shoulder at her teacher, who was jogging alongside Ku Fei, who had yet to let go of his hand, "I think she sees him as too much of a friend, and not enough as a teacher."

"W-Well...it's like that with Negi-sensei, too..." Nodoka pointed out, starting to run out of breath.

"It's not fair!" Haruna exclaimed, throwing her fists into the air, "I want to hold his hand, too!"

"Sh! Not so loud, he'll hear you!"

"For the record, ladies," Connor called out to the three, "I can hear you, and I'm very flattered. If you wanted to hold my hand, all you had to do w-" Nodoka gasped a little when Connor suddenly plummeted to the ground as though he had just been knocked out. Ku Fei didn't slow down, but was now dragging her groaning teacher behind her as she jogged. "St-Stop with the hitting..."

"Ooh! It's not fair! Who does that little hussy think she is? Monopolizing Connor-sensei, like that..." Haruna fumed, looking to her friends for a little support. Yue shrugged, not exactly interested in what that particular teacher did. Nodoka blushed, but didn't say anything, either. "Hey! I'm looking for some help, here!"

"No incentive," Yue muttered.

"Incentive? You want incentive?" From out of nowhere, Haruna pulled out her sketchbook and pencil, and in about four seconds had whipped up an incredibly perverse picture starring Connor, Negi, and Ku Fei. She ripped the picture out of her book, and slapped it onto Nodoka's face, "How's that for incentive?"

The shy girl pried the paper off of her face, and took a look at it.

Ku Fei had to swerve to avoid stepping on Nodoka, who had blacked out after a major nosebleed. Connor rolled over her as he was pulled along by the tireless Chinese girl, snatching the piece of paper out of her hand as he went.

He looked at it long and hard for nearly a minute before cognitive function clicked back on, and he frowned at the paper, "How the hell did Negi wind up being bigger than me? That's, like, a tenth of what I'm really packing," He muttered, trying to figure out who the girl between them was.

"She probably mad at you when she draw it. That me?" Ku Fei asked, bending down to look at the picture over Connor's shoulder. In his mindless staring at the picture, he had failed to notice that Ku Fei had pulled off to the side to get a drink.

He quickly, but carefully, folded the paper up and jammed it into his pant's pocket, "What's you? All I saw was some...scribbles, and stuff. Oh, hey...I'm gonna go talk to the redhead, now. You wait here," He got up to try and leave, but found that Ku Fei had no intention of letting him go, "Sunshine, this is getting old. I'm not gonna bolt in the middle of class."

"I know, but it still fun."

"So, will you let go for a few minutes so I can have some one on one time with that girl Negi's worried about, then?"

"Nope."

"Ok, how about this. I'll sleep in your bed with you tonight if you give me some space to let me do this, alright?"

Ku Fei practically threw him back onto the track, and he took off at a light run to catch up to the short girl he was asked to help. _'Ha, ha, that's a win-win on my part,' _He snickered to himself, pulling up beside the redheaded girl, Natsumi.

He looked down at her as they jogged along. She didn't even seem to notice he was there. She looked distant, as though her mind was lost on some faraway planet known as thought. _'I guess even the class full of perfect girls has it's hardships. I mean, outside of the ones I know personally.'_

"Hey, are you alright?"

His voice seemed to scare her, but it snapped her out of her daze and caught her attention, "C-Connor-sensei, what are you doing?"

"Don't call me that," He wagged a finger at her, "Oh, you know. Enjoying life..." He lied, "But it doesn't look like you are. What's the problem?"

"P-Problem? I don't have a problem, not at all!"

"Look, I'm foreign, but I'm not stupid. Now confess, girly."

Natsumi's face went a deep red as she mumbled something. Not quite catching it, he asked her to repeat it, leaning in a little closer, "It's just, finally...that time of the month..."

He tripped on flat ground, falling flat on his face, "I was just kidding when I said it to Negi!" He shouted, banging his forehead on the ground once before jumping back up and falling back into stride with the girl, "Well...Freckles...uh, why don't you just...you know. Get the thing...o-or things, I'm not sure...that, you know, 'fix' that?"

"You know what will fix it?" Natsumi turned her innocent eyes up to Connor, who felt his stomach start to bubble and flip. How was he supposed to tell her what to do? How the hell did she not know?

"Well...Yeah, don't you?"

She shook her head no, waiting for an answer she could rely on to solve her problem.

"Uh...can't you maybe have this talk with one of the girls you room with? The...'developed' girl stays with you, right? I'll bet she could give you a hand..."

"I don't want to talk to Chizu-ne about this! She'll only make it worse!" Natsumi's eyes started to get wobbly as tears began to form. She was embarrassed as hell, he could tell. He was, too, he had to admit.

"How can it get worse? Uh...o-o-ok, well...after class...I guess I could...you know, m-maybe...buy you the-e-e...items, you will need to-o-o-o...solve...your problem..." He found that it took him a lot longer to talk than it normally did. This was definitely not the kind of capacity he was used to serving in.

"There are things you can buy to-"

"Yes. Yes, there are. And because I'm secure in my masculinity, I will get them for you, as soon as class is over. Then I will bring them-"

"I need them as soon as possible! Can you meet me at six? I have a club meeting, then, and you can let me have them there after rehearsals, ok?" Having finished her laps, and anxious to prepare for her club meet, Natsumi hurried off of the tracks. She threw one last look over her shoulder as she was leaving, "You're a nice guy after all, Connor-sensei."

He lifted a hand after her, as though it was going to help stop her, "D-Don't...don't call me that..." _'She didn't even tell me where...'_

-

"Tampax, Playtex, Kotex...why do they all end in 'x'?" Our black clad hero asked aloud, lifting one of the myriad boxes into the air and looking it over carefully, "What the hell does it need wings for?"

"Excuse me, sir, can I help you find something?" A pretty girl with flowing black hair asked him. He was both relieved and embarrassed to see her wearing a name tag.

"Uh, yes. I just recently lost my dignity, and I was hoping I could replace it. Any suggestions?" He asked sarcastically, praying that the heat he was feeling on his face wasn't him blushing.

"Put the tampons down and leave the store, start a new life somewhere under a new name. Only then can you leave behind the shame that buying tampons for your girlfriend brings," The girl laughed, taking the box from him and picking up a different one, "Playtex is better than Kotex."

Connor took the box from her, looking at it carefully before asking, "It's one size fits all, right?"

"Um, no. You've gotta pick a size, too."

"So...you're telling me I'm supposed to know the size of what's going on down there? Essentially, that's what you're saying?" He looked at her with a blank face. If she were playing poker with him, there was no way she could ever hope to win.

"You ARE her boyfriend, right? If you were my boyfriend, you'd know what I've got going on down there," The worker stated simply, folding her arms.

"How forward of you. Ok, screw it, I'll just buy some of every size. She has friends, I-I don't care," He scooped up a bunch of the boxes and carried them through the store and dropped them beside the register.

He waited patiently as the girl began to run them all over the scanner, trying his best to hold his head high in pride. He was doing something that many men were too insecure to do. He didn't care what the people staring at him thought, because he was helping one of his students through a difficult time, and that was all that mattered.

"What? What?" He asked defensively of an older man, who had ceased pushing his cart through the store to gawk at the sheer number of tampons. The graying man changed directions, slowly making his way away from the man in black, "Yeah, that's what I thought."

With two boxes left to scan, a tired, yet playful, voice called out behind Connor, "Hey, kid!" It was the middle-aged man, he noted, as he spun to see, "You're gonna be needing this, too!" Connor caught a tub of ice cream as the older man lobbed it over to him. A few seconds later, the middle-aged man and his cart were waiting in line behind him. He took a peek at what was in the cart, and a wide grin broke out across his face as he spotted the box of tampons buried under various other things. He saw a tub of ice cream, too.

"You, my friend, are a true bad-ass," Connor offered his hand to the man, who shook it with a laugh.

"All in the name of love, right?" He said through a big smile.

-

'_Man, if those are the kind of lame-ass things I'm destined to do for Fate, then God, just kill me now,'_ Connor thought bitterly. Cradled in one arm, he had a paper bag full of tampons, and in the other, a tub of some damn good looking ice cream. The name implied that he'd have to suffer for all of eternity should he choose to enjoy its dairy goodness, but he was willing to risk it.

He dropped into one of the many spots near the back of the bleacher-like seats, and watched as the crowd of people slowly began to fill up the stage in front of him. He was lucky, and he knew it. The guy buying tampons for his wife had a daughter, who was also part of the drama club, and had been able to send him in the right direction. "It must be Fate," He sighed, patting the bag beside him.

Waiting followed more waiting, which was accompanied by a good friend by the name of waiting. He nearly fell asleep during the too-long-for-its-own-good club meeting, but he managed to stay awake for the last part, which appeared to be character assignments.

"Ok...vampire one goes to...Moro Yamamoto..." The woman in charge stated blandly.

A teenager with long silver hair nodded once, his arms crossed over his chest as he turned to look back at the gaze he felt burning a hole into the side of his head.

Connor quickly looked away, pretending to be looking for something in the large paper bag he had beside him, _'What a freak...what the hell's up with the bandaged arm thing? He's been using it all night!'_

"Vampire two, three, and four go to Sousuke Shima, Yukio Yoshiyuki, and Akayama Yukio, respectively. Our hero for the play will be...Masayoshi Hitodama, good job."

Connor would have sworn Natsumi squeaked when the name was said, but he shrugged it off as unlikely.

Masayoshi let out a sigh of relief, getting a couple of pats on the back to congratulate him. Connor frowned as he looked upon the teen. There was something off about him, he just wasn't sure what it was. He looked like a normal kid for his age. Baggy jeans, plain grey shirt, black hair slicked into a ponytail. The weirdest thing about his was the black book he had, which he hadn't let go of the entire night, and it had been a good two hours.

'_Thank God I got picked,' _Masayoshi thought, casting a little smile in Natsumi's direction, _'Now I just need for her to get picked for the lead female role, and everything will work out...' _

"Now for our heroine...she will be played by Keiko Izanami. Congratulations..." A pretty girl with long, silky black hair flashed everyone around her a smile, and blew a kiss in Masayoshi's direction.

'_Crap...'_

Connor saw Natsumi's head droop, and he got a little frustrated, "Son of a bitch, I was hardly awake and I could tell that Natsumi was a better actress than the anorexic whore you just picked!"

Nobody but Natsumi and Masayoshi seemed to hear him, though, as everyone else was crowding around the Izanami girl. Figures the popular girl would get the lead role.

He started down the stairs down to the stage, not particularly minding that he had been ignored by everyone. He would have gotten in a lot of trouble if he'd been paid attention to. He could hear the boy with the book talking with the lady in charge as he stepped ontot he stage and over to Natsumi, who was looking a little more upset than she had earlier, "Come on, I got...stuff...to give you."

She followed him off stage and around the back, where no one could see them, "It's ok, Connor-sensei. It doesn't matter, now..." The girl whispered sadly, looking away from her teacher.

"Don't call me that, and yes, it does. I didn't do something I never thought I'd have to do for nothing, and you're gonna take these," Connor stated, handing her the bag of tampons.

Natsumi looked into the bag, her eyes widening when she saw them, "What did you get me these for?" She shouted, dropping the bag. The contents popped out, scattering out across the ground.

"You said it was that time of the month, so..."

"I...I meant it was time to find out who got what role in Vamp Show! I wanted the lead role, that's all!"

"Oh...Oh! And you wanted that Masayoshi punk to get the lead male role, that's why you didn't want to talk about it to fully-developed girl. It's a crush situation, not a period situation! Phew, thank God..." Connor wiped his forehead clean, nodding a little bit as understanding came into being.

Masayoshi wound the corner of the stage, looking for Natsumi. He spotted her talking with the man in black, and hurried over to her, "Hey, there you are. I just talked to Mrs. Ishi, and she says that you're the second backup girl, in case anything happens to...uh, what are th-those doing there?" He asked, pointing to the mess of tampons strewn across the ground.

"Uh, those are mine?" Connor suggested quietly, not surprised when Natsumi panicked and ran away, "Nice going, captain sensitive. Who's backup girl one?"

"Uh...Kita Hoshi. Yeah...good luck with the tampon thing, brother," Masayoshi muttered, turning to leave. _'I guess I'll just have to arrange for a couple of...accidents, so Natsumi gets to play the lead role. We'll get to work closely together, and once I get close enough, I can spring it on her...'_

Connor, fueled by embarrassment, managed to pick up the tampons in amazingly good time, and had caught Natsumi before she had gotten a block closer to the dorms.

"Hey, sorry about that Freckles, I didn't mean for that to happen..." He apologized, sitting beside her on a bench as she let out a heavy sigh.

"I know you didn't, Connor-sensei," Natsumi replied quietly. She didn't care much for him to refer to her by something that she didn't like about herself, but she was a little too depressed at the moment to say anything.

He let the sensei bit slide, just this once, "I got you ice cream," He tapped the side of the tub of melted ice cream, and felt it freeze back up as he offered it to her. Somewhat quicker than he expected her to, she grabbed the tub of ice cream. He grinned as she took the spoon he offered. Luckily for him, he had brought two.

She popped the top off, and the two began to indulge. After a few moments of ice cream enjoyment had passed, Natsumi asked, "Did you really go into a store and buy those for me?"

Connor turned to look at her with a pair of the most serious eyes she had ever seen, "I did," He spoke in a needlessly solemn tone, "And you know what else? I'd do it again."

"You're so noble," She laughed, taking another bite. The fact that Connor thought she was going through _that _time of the month was enough to put a healthy dose of red in her cheeks, but she appreciated what he did, anyway. She lifted the tub up to read the label, "'Forbidden chocolate decadence...limited edition sin complex'?"

"Yeah, we're gonna go to hell for eating this," Connor laughed, and was glad that Natsumi did, too. He was starting to think she was a pretty nice girl. He had seen her face when Masayoshi was picked for the lead, and how it had all came to crashing disappointment when she wasn't chosen for the female lead. Well, then again...there wasn't anything stopping him from... 'convincing' the other two girls to back down, right? If he did, it was all part of Fate's design, right?

_-----Author's other note: Well, that chapter was about two thousand words longer than I thought it would be. I considered splitting it into two chapters, but decided against it, in the end. Plus, part of those two thousand words was one of my new favorite scenes: Connor shopping for tampons. Yeah._

_Masayoshi Hitodama is an OC created by Master Masa Random, and he will be a guest star for one or two more chapters. Check out his work, it keeps me entertained!_

_Moro Yamamoto is an OC created by Raedric, and he probably will not have any role in this at all. It was more of a cameo than anything else._

_The play that Natsumi is in is called Vamp Show, and it is, indeed, a real life Japanese play. I looked it up on the internet for the purpose of realism. It is a 2001 play written by Mitani Koki, and is based off of a German musical, Tanz der Vampire. Also, the Japanese names I made up for the other roles of the play were names I pieced together off of stuff on the internet. It took me longer than I'd like to admit, but that's my dedication to you: The reader._

_I forgot to mention in my last 'author's other note' (I DID say I was really tired) that the 'hot coffee scene' was a scene from Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas. I've never played that game, but practically everyone I know does, so I'd heard of it. Chizuru and her weird ways..._

_Thanks for reading...-----_


	5. Sale On Average, Aisle 3

_-----Author's note: I start writing this chapter having come fresh off of reading the end of 'Child of Mine', by Ambrant Arandel. Anyone who hasn't read that is doing themselves a disservice, plain and simple. I do not own Negima!, but any other characters (Save for Masayoshi Hitodama) and ideas are my own. Enjoy...-----_

The warmth surrounding her, the soft strength of his arms around her waist, the steady pressure of his chest against her back as he was breathing. It was so satisfying to know that he was lying beside her, and that she was caught up in not only his grasp, but in the moment that lasted all night long.

Ku Fei had been awake for the last hour or so, but she didn't want to move and spoil the perfection that was being held by one of the strongest men she knew. School wouldn't start for another two hours or so, so there was no need to hurry, anyway. She remembered, once upon a time, thinking that she wouldn't ever find a strong enough man to consider as a possible suitor. Sure, there was always Negi, but he had more girls chasing him than a dog had fleas. Connor, meanwhile, only had two or three people interested, which was much more manageable than the twenty or so that wanted the boy teacher. But that wasn't the only thing she saw in her favorite teacher's aid. If it were, she would be alright with the idea of getting out of bed.

Unknown to Ku Fei, Connor had been awake for quite awhile. He, too, wasn't quite ready for the night to end. He figured that as long as he was deathly quiet and still, Ku Fei would stay asleep and he could hold her for a little longer. He had no idea what Fate had in store for him, but all of that seemed so far away, just then. His problems melted away as he lay there with her, as though they had never even existed. What was it he had to do today, again?

Kaede, with a light yawn, sat up on the edge of her bed before her mouth twitched a little. At first, she instinctively went for the kunai she kept tucked beneath her pillow, but she caught herself beforehand and went for the rope she kept under the bed. Moving so fast that her shadow had a hard time keeping up, the kunoichi had snatched Ku Fei out of the bed and had tied Connor's hands and feet to each bedpost, leaving him sprawled out on the bed in confusion.

"What are you doing?" Kaede barked, her tone of voice one that neither was all that familiar with.

Connor looked at each of his limbs in wonder, then at the two girls who were looking back at him. Ku Fei had a big grin on, but Kaede was close to snarling. Both were a little red. "I don't know where we're going with the ropes, but...I think I might like it."

-

Asuna felt her head droop a little, but with a pinch to her side, she quickly refocused. Chachamaru was 'sleeping' in Konoka's old bed, and Negi was sleeping in his bed. Asuna had gotten a coworker to cover her paper route for the day, so she had been able to stand guard all night to make sure that nothing happened between the android and her young roommate. Scattered all around her were various snacks, most of which were heavy with sugar and caffeine. Currently, she was plagued with one of the most horrific headaches in Mahora history.

A loud crash shook Negi out of his sleep, along with Chachamaru. Asuna, though, didn't move. She simply continued to gaze at the boy with dull eyes, hardly awake at all.

"Asuna-san! What was that noise?" Negi asked, hopping down from his loft and nearly falling down onto the floor. Having just woken up, he was still a little groggy.

Asuna's eyes never left him, and they followed the boy as he warily made his way over to his pigtailed friend.

"A-Asuna-san? Are...are you ok?" He asked softly, reaching out a hand to touch her forehead.

The closer his hand drew, the further back she leaned, keeping about an inch away from contact with the boy. Chachamaru watched as Asuna slipped out of her chair, and paced a sort of circle around the room, with Negi after her, trying to get his hand on her forehead.

"Asuna-san, what's wrong? Ch-Chachamaru-san, please help me catch her!"

"Yes, Negi-sensei," The android complied willingly, joining the hunt for baka red around the tiny dorm room.

Asuna, not willing to touch either one at the moment, tried to move for the door. Chachamaru stepped in the way, wagging a finger at her as though she had done something wrong. Negi dove at his friend from behind, but baka red was a step ahead of him. She spun out of the way, which gave Negi all the space he needed to fly straight into Chachamaru, forcing her up against the door and into what looked a lot like a passionate embrace. It didn't help matters at all when the android wrapped her arms around the boy and locked him into an equally passionate looking kiss.

-

"I was only...k-kidding...half kidding..." Connor, who still had ropes dangling off of his ankles and wrists, turned his blurry gaze down the hall as a bone shattering slap resounded throughout the dorms. Negi's door exploded off of its hinges, much as his own had just a moment ago. The boy teacher flew out into the hall with the door, smacking his head against the opposite wall before he slid down to the floor in a sore heap. Connor would have laughed if he wasn't afraid for his safety, at the time. Negi was in a similar position. Back to the ground, legs up against the wall as though they were sitting on it.

Asuna stepped out into the hall, holding what looked to be a giant paper fan. She pointed it at Negi, and said what Connor believed to be 'technosexual', before dragging Chachamaru away. Negi groaned in reply, but otherwise made no indication he had even heard the girl.

He turned to look down the other end of the hall, the direction that Kaede and Ku Fei had marched off down. In the little bit of time where he had gotten to see Kaede's face before Ku Fei had untied him, and before the kunoichi had slapped him into and through their door, he would have sworn that the look in her eyes was more jealousy than anything else. ...For that matter, it looked like the red idiot was a little jealous, too. Or maybe he was just imagining things...

He grinned a little as the library trio left their room to see what was going on, and how they practically killed themselves in dashing to their teacher's side. All Negi needed now was for them to ask...

"Where does it hurt, Connor-sensei?" Someone asked, which confused the hell out of him, "Tell me so I can kiss it and make it better!"

He redirected his eyes a little to the right to find the manga girl beside him. He wished he could remember her name, right then. While he didn't want to admit he was a little hurt, he couldn't pass up the opportunity, "I-It hurts all over..."

Yue and Nodoka, once they were sure that Negi was alright, had to drag Haruna away from their other teacher. Whatever he had said had been like flicking on her switch, or something. They would have to have a talk about her behavior, later.

-

School was out for the day, and Yue, Nodoka, and Haruna were sitting at a round table in one of the deeper rooms of Library Island, doing their homework. Sort of. At any rate, two of the three had some qualms about being where they were, even though they considered it as a home away from home.

"H-Haruna...Are you sure it's safe here?" Nodoka asked, looking around as if she expected the structure to collapse around her.

"Of course it is!" The manga artist exclaimed, pumping a fist into the air, "Would I lead you astray?"

"You'd lead us into a sex scandal," Yue muttered dryly, clapping her notebook shut. There was no way in hell any studying was going to get done, and she knew it. Not when there was plenty of...not studying, to do.

"Sure I'd lead you through the depths of a sex scandal! You know what else? You'd love every minute of it, even if you won't admit it. Besides, this is, like, our home! We can't just-"

Haruna was cut off when the ground beneath them shook violently, and books rattled off of their shelves. The people up above were working on the repairs to the library, even as they spoke. "Damn that robotics club for using the campus as their testing ground for new toys..." Haruna sighed, letting her head smack down onto the table before her.

"Y-Yeah...damn them..." Yue tried to sound sure of her reply, but it didn't quite come out sounding that way. She knew all too well that it wasn't the robotics club's fault that Library Island was a mangled shell of itself. It was the site of Ku Fei, Negi, and Connor's fight with the now dead copycat. The headmaster had done an admirable job of covering it up, though, and the robotics club was kind enough to accept compensation to go along with it. It was tough for her to be the only one of the library trio to know the truth, but it wasn't so tough that she was going to tell them the truth.

"That didn't sound like you..." Haruna stated, lifting her face up from the table to show the gleam in her eyes, "You wouldn't be holding anything out on me, now would you?"

Nodoka began to tremble as she saw that look. Yue's eyes widened a little, but other than that she managed to maintain her somber demeanor, "I don't know what you're talking about. I think we should, however, discuss your advance on Connor-sensei, this morning," She tried to shy away from the topic of her knowing something that the big gossip didn't.

"Oh no, no, no...no changing the subject, Yuetchi...what exactly is it that you know?" Haruna slowly rose from her seat, the air around the room darkening a little to accentuate her eyes shimmering a bright red.

"H-Haruna, I d-don't think that..." Nodoka quickly shut up when her friend shot her an equally frightening look.

The manga artist scanned her shy friend for a few seconds, then seemed content with the knowledge that Nodoka knew nothing about what was going on. "Nodoka, I think you should leave us alone, for a while."

"B-B-But..." Another look shot her way, and Nodoka was out the door and down the hall before either one realized it.

"Now..." Haruna chuckled a little, holding a folded whip up in front of her and pulling at either end to make a satisfying snapping noise, "We're going to have a heart-to-heart, Yuetchi...because real friends don't keep secrets..."

"Wh-Where did that whip come from?" Yue stuttered, backing away from her terrifying friend. No matter what, though, she wasn't going to saya thing.

"This? Oh, it's for when Connor-sensei and I...well, that's a tale for another time. Sing for me, my friend..."

Nodoka sighed, making her way back through Library Island the way they had come in. She didn't want to run into any construction workers, or anything, so she made sure to keep quiet and stay away from all noises. But when all noise in general seemed to die off, she began to get nervous. The rumbling of construction equipment was gone, and she couldn't even make out the sound of her own breathing. The lights faded, and the temperature began to drop.

Nodoka fell to her knees, pressed to the ground either by terror, or by the sudden increase in gravity. She pulled out her pactio card and cell phone at the same time, but dropped the phone, unable to grasp it in her trembling hand. It fell to the ground, and vanished in the overbearing shadows that had sucked up all visibility. She tried to summon her artifact, but her voice caught in her throat. Her shaky breaths were coming out in puffs of steam, and she could feel tears start to form. Something was coming, and it was the scariest something she had ever felt.

"Nodoka Miyazaki," A chilling voice reverberated through the shadows, "There is something we need to discuss, so you will be coming with me."

-

Masayoshi looked from side to side, making sure no one was watching him. Oh, great, look suspicious, nice. He was currently tailing Keiko Izanami, the girl who had been chosen for the lead female role in Vamp Show. She was on her way to the store, it appeared. Luckily enough for Masayoshi, that was a great place for an 'accident' to happen. Lots of things high up. Never know when something might just...sort of...tip over onto someone.

He had to make sure that Natsumi got that role. Plain and simple. His relationship with her was depending on it, and he needed the trust that the relationship would bring so he could carry out his mission. The mission was of the utmost importance, or his secret would be revealed to the world. A secret that he couldn't let ANYONE ever find out, no matter what he had to do to keep it safe. He wouldn't kill Keiko, but he'd make sure she wasn't in the play.

He grinned a little as she knelt down to grab a can of soup, or something, he wasn't really paying attention, "Sorry for this, but you've gotta take one for team Masayoshi, this time."

In his black book, Masayoshi quickly scribbled a magical design within a circle, and was set to launch his attack. Before he could, however, the man in black with the tampons from the other day showed up beside Keiko, with Natsumi at his side.

"Hey. You're that Izanami girl, right?" Connor asked bluntly, looking the girl up and down. Still looked like she hadn't ever heard what a cheeseburger was.

"Um, yes. Can I help you? Oh, hi Natsumi-chan," The tall girl replied, trying to sound bored. Natsumi wasn't an idiot, however, and could practically taste the disdain from the girl as she heard her name.

"Yeah, actually you can. You should step down from the lead role."

Masayoshi slapped himself in the forehead, cursing at the fool for being so direct. He apparently didn't know how to handle Keiko at all.

"Excuse me? You're out of your mind if you think I'm just going to back out."

"I'll sleep with you if you do," Connor stated, folding his arms. He didn't like this girl, but if that's what it was going to take.

"Wh-What?" Natsumi shouted, jumping back from her friend as Keiko punched him in the arm.

"What's the big deal? I slept with Sunshine last night to get my way. It's really not a problem."

Keiko watched as a nice section of the aisle got a blood shower, courtesy of Natsumi's nose. Masayoshi, himself, was now not trying to hide himself. He was standing up at the end of the aisle, arms out to his sides as if to ask 'what the hell's your problem?'.

"As...intriguing an offer as that is, I'm going to say no. There's another reason I want the lead role, and it starts with an 'M'."

"B-But Masayoshi doesn't..." Natsumi tried to think of something to dissuade the girl, but she couldn't come up with a single thing.

"Masa-kun is such a catch, I can't believe he's single," Keiko said softly, a little sparkle starting to show in her eyes.

Masayoshi ducked back out of sight at the end of the aisle, straining his ears to listen.

"But I...l-like..." Natsumi trailed off, wondering how on earth it was fair for such a pretty girl like Keiko to be going after the same person she wanted. Being as gloriously average as she was, she knew she didn't have any chance against the beauty before her in getting Masayoshi.

"I don't care what you 'like', Natsumi-chan. This isn't about you and your creepy fascination with MY Masa-kun, it's about me and my 'love'. Yes, I love Masayoshi Hitodama, and I won't give up my chance to get closer to him, especially not to you."

"Love? How can you say that? He's, like, two years younger than you, for one. Two, he's not even that good looking. I mean, come on, you're turning down a night in my arms for that guy?" Connor looked from one girl to the next, wondering what the hell was so special about this other guy that people would actually fight over him.

Masayoshi shrugged off Connor's statement. He knew he was pretty good looking, but he knew there were shinier gems out there, too. Besides, he had two girls arguing for him, and only had a guy arguing against him. He was feeling pretty good about himself, right then.

"Because he's the perfect man. He's not an idiot, but he's not so smart that he can't be controlled. He's not unattractive, but he's not so good looking that I'd ever have to worry about him going astray. Not to mention he's an all around nice person, who I hear has plenty of money stored away, somewhere. He's the perfect man..." Keiko said all of this with a happy little smile, but then her expression turned bitter and she turned an angry look to Natsumi, "Besides, I hear that I'm just his type. Long, shimmering black hair, beautiful slender figure, flawless skin without even a hint of a mole, pimple, scar, birthmark, or even freckles," She said the last part in a highly discernable tone, as if to say 'which means you have no chance'.

'_Actually, that's not true. I kind of like 'em a little on the short side, and I like lightly colored hair better. Maybe it's weird, but I've sort of had a thing for pink, lately...if she had a sister...ah, yeah.'_ But that was crazy thinking, and Masayoshi knew it. There was nobody with pink hair, and a little on the short side, and with a sister? That was crazy.

The man in black caught the hurt look on Natsumi's face, who had apparently heard similar things, "Really? Oh, you forgot pompous anorexic gold-digging super-bitch. That's always the turn on," Connor snarled, motioning for Natsumi to leave, with instructions to get more of that sinful ice cream. She sullenly made her way to the frozen food aisle.

"Say what you will, but I always get the man I want," Keiko grinned, flipping her long hair over her shoulder.

"I'll bet you've had plenty of men, you skank. You're, what, seventeen? Eighteen? That's great how you can still get your jollies by picking on a fourteen-year-old. I'll bet if your 'perfect man' could hear you now, he'd be disgusted."

"Masa-kun would understand that sometimes you have to do mean things to get what you want. It'd be better for Natsumi-chan if she just quit now and saved herself the effort."

"What's wrong with you? She's already insecure enough as it is! Have you seen the people in the class she's in? She's got an inferiority complex the size of your ego, and you're just throwing wood on the fire by taking the one guy she's interested in! Don't you remember what it was like to be her age?"

"I remember having to have teachers break up fights over me, when I was fourteen. Still happens, now, actually..." Keiko turned a little grin up to the angry face of the man before her, "But enough about me. Why are YOU trying to help Natsumi-chan?"

He had a few answers for this question. 1. Because I think it's fate for Natsumi and Masayoshi to get together. 2. You're a nasty girl, and I don't want to see you get your way. But he decided to go with three, which is as follows, "Because she's my student, and I want to see her happy." He was a little sickened with himself for sounding like Negi, right then, but he was feeling...protective of Natsumi, at the moment. It would pass. He really hoped it would pass.

"How chivalrous of you. Tell Natsumi-chan that I'm sorry for her hopeless infatuation, but I will not give her a chance to get closer to Masa-kun," Keiko turned to leave, but Connor reached out and grabbed her wrist.

"I can land you a date with him, and I can get it for tonight."

This seemed to spark the girl's interest, and she turned to look him back in the eye, "Can you, now? What kind of date?"

"The kind that lasts into the wee hours of the morning, girly. Surely you could use that time to try and bring Masayoshi over to your corner, right? You drop out of the play, I'll see to it that you get to have your time with him, tonight," As Connor was saying this, he was praying that no one could hear him.

Masayoshi's mouth was hanging open as he listened. Was the guy in the coat trying to get him in bed with this girl?

"Ok, if you can make it happen, I'll drop out. That's a big 'if' though," Keiko smirked at Connor as he let go of her wrist and began to walk away.

She resumed her hunt for the right soup can, oblivious to Connor as he slapped a hand against the aisle long shelves, sending off a pulse of magic into the frame. The magic shot through the cans and into the ones in front of Keiko, which burst open, soaking her in various soups. "Cleanup in aisle three!" He called out, meeting up with Natsumi at the checkout counter.

"That was magic...so he's a mage, huh? He can make that promise because he's planning on using a glamour to impersonate me for the date. I see..." Masayoshi muttered, quietly slipping out of the store. This might complicate things, in the end.

Connor and Natsumi quickly left the store, Connor practically jogging to get away before someone suspected he had done something. Once the two were a safe distance away from the store, the teacher's assistant looked down at the quiet girl beside him and asked, "What's an eighteen-year-old doing in the same drama club as you?"

"The drama club is for the highschool kids, too, not just the middle school. It's her last year, which means she's had a lot of practice and is really good. That's why she got the lead role," Natsumi replied sadly, trying not to look too dejected.

"So that's why, huh? Well, I wasn't all that awake during the club meeting I went to, but I thought you were pretty damn convincing, Freckles."

"It's ok, you don't have to try and make me feel better. You stood up for me while we were in the store, and that meant a lot. Just...d-don't do it again, ok?"

She took a few more steps before coming to a stop, waiting for Connor to keep moving. She raised a sleeve to wipe the tears away before they could fall from her eyes. The two stood there for several seconds, people passing them by as though they weren't there at all.

"Why would you ask me to not stand up for you?" He asked from behind her, and she didn't turn when she answered.

"I don't want to be...someone that people have to save, and that they pity...I hardly matter to anyone, anyway, b-but I don't want to be a burden...I'd rather just..." She tried to say what she was feeling, but she started to get choked up and stopped talking.

Connor closed the gap between them, and laid his hands on her shoulders from behind, turning her around. She was crying, but he didn't need to look at her face to tell. She was shaking a little from keeping it all bottled up and quiet. He set himself on his knees and pulled her into a hug. The people that had been ignoring them, before, now looked at the two as they passed by.

Natsumi tried to pull out of the hug, "Wh-What are you d-doing? Stop it!" She squeaked, finding it harder and harder to keep her tears at bay. Connor felt her strength leaving her as she started to cry on his shoulder. She dropped the bag containing the ice cream, "E-Everyone's looking...please, st-stop..."

"It was killing me to hold Sunshine's hand in public. As embarrassed as you may be, try and understand that it's a lot harder for me to do this than it is for you."

"Th-Then why are you? Just let me go..."

"Because I think you need this. Right here, in front of all of these people. You want to be the center of attention on stage, but don't even want to be a topic off of it. It's easier to be on a stage when you're someone else, right? Someone who's special, who has some sort of ability or defect, or has interesting things happen to them. But you don't need anything like that to deserve having someone stand up for you, especially not me. Regardless of what you think about yourself, I know that the real you is better than any character," He squeezed a little harder to accentuate the last part.

She closed her eyes, putting her arms around him, too. She was embarrassed as all hell that people were stopping to stare at a crying schoolgirl being hugged by a man in a black trench coat that had 'the way of God' emblazoned across the back, but what he said made her feel so good she didn't care. She soaked in the embrace for the while it lasted, the tears slowly drying up. "Do you mean that?" She asked quietly, coming out of the hug as Connor rose to his feet.

"Let me prove it to you, Freckles." He pulled off his coat, and ran over to a streetlight. He jumped up four or so feet, gripping the pole with one hand and swinging around it with his boot pushed against it to hold himself in place. With his free arm he swung his coat around over his head, "Hey!" He shouted to get the attention of everyone who wasn't already staring, "Natsumi Murakami, that fine piece of woman down there," He made a big deal of pointing her out to everyone, "Is one of the sweetest, funniest, most drop-dead gorgeous ladies I have ever met, and if she were of legal age, I would bag her in a heartbeat! If you don't feel the same way, my fellow men, than I can say without a doubt that you are a homosexual!"

A couple of people cheered for him as Natsumi pulled him down, redder than the blood she had left on aisle three of the store, "Oh my God, what was that?"

Connor slung his coat back on, tilting down to give his student a kiss on the cheek, "That was the truth. Don't worry about being a problem to anyone. I'd kill to have problems as sweet as you, Freckles."

Unknown to the two of them, a rather displeased man had just watched the entire spectacle, and was making a phone call before the two had even reached the end of the street.

-

"You want me to what?"

"You want him to what?"

"I do not approve of this course of action."

"Look, it'll be fun. Hopefully not too fun, because I hate this girl with a passion, but hey, it's for Freckles, so time to take one for the team."

Negi, Asuna, and Chachamaru each stared into the eyes of the assistant teacher, who had just asked Negi to pose as Masayoshi on a date with a snob they had never even met. Both girls, though, found themselves loathing this Keiko for the date with Negi. Uh, Masayoshi, they found themselves loathing this Keiko for the date with Masayoshi.

"Well...I did ask you to help Natsumi-san. What kind of teacher would I be if I wasn't willing to do my best, either? I'll do it," Negi agreed to the plan, which was a weight off of Connor's chest. He might kill that girl if he had to be the one to date her.

"Phew, great. Are you gonna be able to keep the glamour up for...four or five hours, though?"

"I'll have to take little breaks, but I should be able to pull it off. Besides..." Negi motioned to Asuna and Chachamaru, "I'm sure I'll have some backup if I should need a distraction." Both girls nodded, knocking fists.

"Alright, cool. I pinched this picture from Freckles, use it to get this guys looks down," Connor handed Negi the picture he had taken from Natsumi during their hug on the sidewalk. He felt guilty, but he was just doing what needed to be done. He'd make sure she got it back.

"Well, what's he sound like?"

"Uh, you mean that doesn't just come naturally once you get the image down? Dammit, just fake it. Keep changing it up until you get one that sticks. Even if it's wrong, you can probably convince her that you've just got a little cold, or something," Connor opened the door to Negi's dorm, and left before anymore complaints or questions arose. He bumped by Haruna and Yue as he made a beeline for his own room.

Negi was preparing himself for a verbal beating by an angry looking Asuna and a weepy looking Chachamaru (The emotions she was storing were starting to worry him), when his door popped open again and two of the library trio entered.

"Huh, I thought for sure she'd be in here," Haruna commented, looking specifically up at Negi's loft.

"What's going on?" The boy teacher asked, glad at the interruption which had saved him an awkward position.

"We can't find Nodoka, Negi-sensei. We've tried her cell, but she's not picking up," Yue answered with a slight bow.

"Is that so? Maybe I should-"

Asuna smacked him on the head with her fist, "Hey, don't get off the subject! I'm sure Bookstore's fine. Tell them about your date tonight!"

Negi now had an angry Asuna, a weepy Chachamaru, a blushing Yue, and an intrigued Haruna on his hands. It was five in the afternoon, and the rest of his night promised to be an interesting one.

-

"You want me to what?"

"I'm not going to repeat myself. He's a threat to my entire plan, and I will not tolerate his interference!"

Masayoshi shook his head a little, wondering why he kept coming back to the dingy basement with the cold coffee, to continually deal with this incompetent. "I'm not going to kill him. That's crazy. He's a decent guy, from what I saw, and he's just trying to help out his student."

"You WILL kill him, or else. You know what I'll do..." The throaty voice replied.

"Alright, look. I won't kill the guy, but I can still beat the crap out of him and get him out of Mahora. Once he's out of commission, you guys can send him to some other country, or something, I don't care. No killing."

"That's a better tune, Masayoshi. If you can do that, we will remove him from Mahora without killing him. That's fair enough."

"Alright, now I just need to set everything up so I can-"

"It's already been done. You will do this, tonight."

-

"Sunshine, you here?" Connor looked around his room, finding that it was pretty empty. He decided to switch pillows with Ku Fei for that fresh Sunshine scent he loved, but froze up when he found a letter on his bed. Humming to himself, he picked up the letter and unfolded it to read.

_-----Author's other note: Recap of what's going on:_

_1. Nodoka is missing, and only I know where she is. Well, some readers might, too, but no one else does._

_2. Negi has to go out on a date with Keiko Izanami, now, with Asuna, Haruna, Chachamaru, and Yue tagging along. My head's hurting just thinking about it._

_3. The people blackmailing Masayoshi have now set him out to take care of Connor, who they believe to be getting too close to Natsumi, who is their goal. For those who are wondering, we are NOT supposed to know what exactly Masayoshi is being blackmailed with, at the moment._

_Masayoshi is the mental property of Master Masa Random, and I make no claims to him. Keep writing, my brother!_

_Before I forget, I would like to point out that I have started my own Negima! forum, and would like to direct you there for all your Negima! talking needs. The forums for this section are too barren! Go there, and speak. Speak, and be heard. Should anyone heed this and actually look into the forums, specifically the one I started, tell me if you can think of a good Negima! topic that I can use in the context of one of the club activities. ...If you check it out, you'll get what I'm saying._

_Thanks for reading...-----_


	6. A Night Designed By Fate Pt 1

_-----Author's note: I do not own Negima!, but any other characters (Save for Masayoshi) and ideas are my own. Chachamaru's first line, followed by Haruna's line, is inspired by a scene from the television series 'Angel'. Just thought I'd point it out. Serac is in this chapter, and he'll be explaining Fate some more, and religious references WILL be made, for those who don't like that, you have been warned. Enjoy...-----_

Negi looked himself over in the mirror, marveling at how good he could be, sometimes. He mirrored the appearance of the boy in the picture perfectly, even down to the little pimple he had just below his ear, barely visible in the picture. Not a strand of hair was out of place, and the ponytail looked as though he had ripped it right off of the boy's head and placed it on himself.

Haruna slapped the boy on the back with a hearty laugh, "Wow, I can't even tell that's you in there, at all!"

Yue laughed a little, herself, glad that she had talked Haruna into going with her to get snacks while her teacher 'got into his disguise'. She still didn't know about magic, and with any luck she never would. Such a big gossip, no matter how much she loved her, probably couldn't be trusted with such a big secret.

"I-I know! Chachamaru-san was a big help in putting this together, right?" Negi lied, turning to look at Chachamaru, who simply nodded.

"Oh, is that why Yue was so insistent on me going with her? So Chachamaru could help dress Negi-sensei? So why didn't Asuna come, too? I think I see, now...Yue and I are like the third wheel on your three-way tryst, tonight. Shame on you, Yuetchi, I thought you were on Nodoka's side!" Haruna smacked her diminutive friend on the head.

"Her s-side?" Our favorite boy instructor stuttered a little, rubbing the back of his neck.

"Tryst?" Asuna grumbled, wringing her hands against the back of the seat she was currently perched in.

"It means a private, romantic rendezvous among lovers. I believe she is saying that you, Negi-sensei, and myself have become romantically involved, and partake in illicit actions, most likely in succession," Chachamaru elaborated for baka red, who growled in response. She knew what tryst meant.

"Or concurrently! Negi-sensei, I do not approve of this at all! Or...wholeheartedly. If you wanted to take a turn down mature road, you should have spoken with Nodoka about it! I'll bet Yuetchi would be alright with being the extra per-"

Haruna sprawled out on the ground, having just been clobbered upside the head with the frying pan Yue had snatched off of the little stove Konoka used to slave over. "Don't listen! I would mind being the extra!"

"You say it like you would rather be the main course," Asuna grinned, raising an eyebrow.

"Th-That's not what I meant! S-Sorry, Negi-sensei!" She plummeted into a bow so fast that it kicked up wind, "Don't listen to them, sorry!"

"I-It's ok, Yue-san, you don't have to apologize. I'm not l...lovers with Asuna-san or Chachamaru-san."

"Not yet," The android muttered, looking away casually.

"Wh-What? No! Not ever!" Negi exclaimed, waving his arms around beside him in panic.

"What, is there something wrong with us?" Asuna asked, glaring across the room at the boy, who started to tremble. She'd never want to get with that runty little mage anyway. ...Right?

"Not e-ever?" Chachamaru asked, reticular cleansing fluid getting dangerously close to overflowing.

Negi looked from an increasingly angry Asuna to an increasingly upset Chachamaru. God, Hakase had really screwed things up by adding the emotional emulators to the android. It was funny how love and jealousy seemed to be playing the biggest roles, here. That made her a pretty good teenaged girl. That was where she was picking the emotions up from, after all.

"I-I...Uh, need to c-call Keiko, now, sorry!" Negi rushed from the mirror and snatched up the phone, quickly dialing in the number Connor had left him. He said he had gotten it from Natsumi, and that he'd leave it up to the boy to handle the details of the meeting. How kind of him.

As the phone on the other end began to ring, Chachamaru's hand shot up, and her pinky exploded from her and towards the startled boy. He flinched, but was pleased when he found that the target had been the phone, and not him. A little wire was trailing from the disconnected pinky back into Chachamaru's arm, and her mouth was hanging open a little to serve as a speaker for the call. It looked like everyone was going to get to hear what Keiko had to say.

"Hello?" The recipient of the call asked sweetly.

"Uh, hey. It's Ne...Masayoshi," Negi tried to alter his voice to something that sounded like it would fit the teen's appearance, but wasn't sure of how well he succeeded, "You ready for tonight?"

"Ooh, Masa-kun! I'm ready for anything with you, and I hope you're ready for _anything _with me..."

Chachamaru's face started to darken as these words came from her speakers. Yue didn't look all that happy, either. Sure, she was talking to who she thought was Masayoshi but this Keiko was, in reality, speaking to Negi!

"Y-You just say the word, and I'll make it happen. This is your night, and I'll make it count," Negi flashed his three conscious friends a smile and a thumbs up, though it was met with blank stares and hanging jaws.

"Masa-kun, you're too much! I'm sure we will make it count. So where did you plan on taking me tonight, anyway?"

"Say the word, love, and it shall be done. Money isn't a concern."

'_Ooh, good one, Aniki!' _Chamo thought with a grin, peeking his head out of Asuna's drawers to hear all the better. He had to throw both paws over his mouth to keep from laughing at Yue and Chachamaru, who were both starting to tremble a little. Asuna's face was bright red, and it was starting to look like steam was gonna shoot out of her bells.

"Really? I never knew what a gentleman you were, Masa-kun! As a matter of fact, there is a certain place I'd like to go..."

Chamo ducked back into the panty drawer as he struck upon a fun idea. Things were moving pretty slow with Negi and, well, his entire class, as far as relationships went. Not being particularly patient, Chamo had ordered a rather...useful tool, to help speed things along with the more antsy students. It should be noted that by 'antsy', the ermine meant 'already close to jumping him'.

He spent a few moments rummaging through the various unmentionables he was so fond of, before he found the item he was looking for. The perverse little animal snatched up the tiny brown tablet, a giant grin creeping across the face an inch or so away from the devious little object before him. Negi was still talking with Keiko, but he wasn't paying much attention, at the moment.

'_Yes...one of the most dangerous magical goodies to have ever been unleashed upon the world...and now I, Albert Chamomile, will unleash it upon big brother! Magically cultivated, maintained, and enhanced sex pheromones! Oh yes, it will be fun indeed...'_

Chamo, displaying skills even he didn't know he had claim to, whipped up a cup of tea without even being noticed by the others for his speed. He added the final ingredient to the cup, chuckling fiendishly as it dissipated into nothing in the drink. _'With this is his system, Aniki will be practically irresistible to the ladies! The other girls are gonna see this girl get all over him, and absolutely flip out, realizing their true feelings for him at an even faster rate than Aphrodite_ _could make them! Ah, jealousy is a thing of beauty. And when he starts to react to the magical half of this thang, himself? Ooh...There will be a lot more than just contracts getting filled...' _Doing all he could to keep from laughing maniacally, Chamo settled down to listen to the end of the phone call.

"...ze doesn't always matter, so it's not a big deal. But, you know, I do prefer them to be...well, huge," Keiko admitted with a little giggle.

"I can promise you, I won't disappoint. You like big, I've got big," Negi replied with a ghost of a smirk.

Chamo's mouth dropped open, and the cup of tea he was holding nearly slipped from his grasp. He turned to look at the three conscious girls, who were all looking upset, though for some other reason, it seemed.

"Alright, so I'll pick you up in an hour, and we'll make a night out of it."

"Ok, I'll see you then, Masa-kun!" With a sickening 'tee-hee' that Chamo assumed meant 'I'm going to make a man out of you, my friend', the phone call ended.

"A-Aniki, what the hell were you just talking about?" The ermine asked loudly, jumping up onto Chachamaru's shoulder. He squeaked in pain and leapt off when his paws were practically singed off by the robots blistering hot exterior. Chachamaru retracted her pinky and closed her mouth, shaking a little as though she were about to explode.

"Chamo-kun? She said she wanted a limo...Guess I shouldn't have said money wasn't an issue, huh?" The boy disguised as a teen laughed a little, sad that his wallet was going to find itself empty by the end of the night.

"Limo...ha, ha, right! The bigger the better, right Ane-san?" Chamo nudged at Asuna's ankle.

"Sh-Shut up with your innuendos, you freaky little pervert! Haruna might wake up!" Baka red replied hotly.

"Well, I guess I'd better..." Negi made for the door, but Chamo was in front of him before he could reach the knob.

"Wait, Aniki, you need this!" The ermine leapt up to the boy's shoulders, and practically rammed the teacup into his mouth.

Negi stumbled back a step, almost choking on the liquid as it traveled down his throat, "Wh-What was that for, Chamo-kun?" He asked, coughing for air.

"Luck!"

"I felt luckier before...anyway, I'd better get a move on if I want to make all of this work. Remember, girls, if I need some backup, I'm counting on you," Negi waved goodbye, closing the door behind him.

Chamo turned to look at the stunned expression on the girl's faces. The pheromones wouldn't immediately affect Negi, but it would start working its magic on the nearby girls pretty quick. He felt a surge of happiness fly through him as he realized that it was a success. Yue was collapsed on top of Haruna, blood spilling from her nose. Chachamaru was starting to short-circuit, her arm twitching and jolting about. Asuna had a drool waterfall going, and she didn't look ready to stop anytime soon, judging from the starry look in her eyes. Even Haruna was starting to stir, muttering something about a whip. Tonight might prove to be one of the better nights Chamo had spent at Mahora...

-

"Last time I came out here...I got shot in the back," Connor commented to the darkness around him. The sun had just dipped behind the horizon, casting shadows across the World Tree plaza. He was on his way up the stairs to meet with 'someone', who had left him a note in his dorm room, "Guess she wants to get it right, this time..."

As his line of sight rose up over the stairs, he found someone that he wasn't expecting to find. Actually, he was a little surprised that he was disappointed that he was wrong. Rather than being granted the pleasant sight of Ku Fei, he wound up finding that Masayoshi was the only one to be found anywhere around. The teen was standing alone in the center of the plaza, the tree behind him.

"There you are! I was starting to wonder if you were gonna come, or not," Masayoshi admitted, waving a little.

"...I wouldn't have come if I knew you were the guy who wanted to meet me here. I thought that...I thought something else," Connor stopped at the top of the steps, ready to turn around and leave.

"Hey, don't be so mean about it. I've called you here for a good reason."

"What, about Freckles?"

"Well, indirectly, yeah, but that's not what we need to be concerned with, at the moment..." Masayoshi trailed off, spinning his quill around in-between his fingers so that it appeared to be more of a blur than a solid object.

"Then we have nothing to talk about. I have more important things to do," Connor turned his back to the odd teen, and started the descent down the stairs.

"Like switch pillows with your student?"

The man in black nearly missed the next step, but managed to keep himself from falling down the stairs, "How did-"

"You don't think that's a little...you know, creepy?" Masayoshi asked airily, swaying from side to side as though he were listening to music.

"I think it's creepy that you know what I was doing...who the hell are you?" Connor turned around, and stepped back to the top of the stairs.

"Well...that's a fun question, but one that I don't think I'm gonna answer, today."

"Then how did you know what I was going to do?"

"A little help from my book, and nothing's impossible!" Masayoshi grinned, opening up his black leather book to show Negi's aid.

Connor watched as bright blue lights etched across the pages like a spider's web, forming runes and circles which vanished as soon as they appeared, "You're a...you? You know magic?"

"Geez, sound a little more surprised, I still have some pride," Masayoshi laughed, still swaying to a tune only he could hear.

"Fine. So what do you want?"

"Actually, it's kinda funny, I'm gonna kick the crap out of you."

Connor raised an eyebrow, but said nothing.

Masayoshi nodded a little bit, "Yeah."

"You're right, that IS funny. Kid, you couldn't kick the crap out of a soggy diaper. Do yourself a favor and go profess your love to Freckles," Connor shook his head, turning to leave for the second time.

Masayoshi tore a page out of his book and slapped it to the ground.

BANG. Connor stumbled back, tripping as his heel collided with a step, and fell to a sitting position. He rubbed his sore nose, "What the hell?" He reached out, placing his hand on an invisible wall. It was cold to the touch, but his hand never grew numb or uncomfortable. It was magic, that was easy enough to tell.

"I've just sealed us both in the plaza. You aren't going anywhere, Connor-sensei," Masayoshi said tauntingly, resuming his swaying.

"Don't call me that," Connor muttered, brushing himself off as he stood up, "So what the hell's going on? Why couldn't I tell you had that kind of power? I didn't even know you were a mage, at all..."

"Just like your magic is different from others, so is mine. 'Course, mine never killed anyone on accident..."

Connor released the glamour hiding his sword, and reached over his shoulder to pull it free from its sheath, "Wrong thing to say, jack-ass," He growled, stomping towards his now prey.

Masayoshi waved his hands in front of him, "Think of Natsumi-chan! I didn't mean anything by it, seriously!"

Connor spun his sword around once so that the blunt edge was facing out, "Good point, I'd better not kill you."

Masayoshi laughed as he hopped back to keep a safe distance between the two, "Alright, alright, let's hurry and do this so I can finish my job!" The teen tore another page out of his book, which had shiny blue ink snaking through it like wildfire, now. He slapped the page down to the stone beneath his feet, bubbles shooting up out of the page as though it were a portal.

Connor paused to watch the bubbles float around for a moment. The entire plaza was filled with them, drifting along pleasantly through the air, "What the hell? You gonna cute me to death?"

"Something like that," Was the calm response given. Masayoshi raised his hand and snapped his fingers.

He didn't realize it at the time, but none of the bubbles had come close to their creator. Instead, they were clustered more around himself. At the sound of Masayoshi's snapping fingers, the bubbles all simultaneously exploded, engulfing the surprised aid in a maelstrom of shockwaves and fire.

Masayoshi didn't wait for the dust to settle. Tearing out another page, he used his quill to scribble out a homemade spell, which he threw into the air.

With a groan, Connor rose to his feet. Exploding bubbles...not one he had ever thought of, that was for sure. He now regretted the soggy diaper comment, which he now knew was pretty far off. He heard a strange sound...coming from above? He thrust an arm up to the sky, a blast of air powering through the dust to clear his vision. It was when he could see that he realized he should have been using his time to get out of the way. Neon blue streaks of light zipped through the air, whistling as they went, coming at him at an angle from the sky.

Masayoshi cringed a little as the beams of energy crashed down all around the man in the coat, decimating the ground around him and swallowing him up in its strength, "I hope he's not dead...I heard he was pretty tough, but I guess not..."

A torrent of fire lashed out from the debris, catching the teen off guard. He barely managed to raise his book and flip it open, swallowing up the length of fire as it came at him. Connor dashed out through the dust, sword low to the ground as he charged his enemy.

Masayoshi lifted his foot to avoid a sweeping kick, then sidestepped as the sword rose up from the ground in a vertical slice. Connor swung up from his sweeping kick, following it with a roundhouse, driving the heel of his boot into the teen's cheek.

Clutching his book as he went, Masayoshi, propelled by the kick, was sent back several feet before he landed on his back with a thud. From his position on the ground, he scribbled a symbol onto the ground beside him, which he tapped with his quill.

The ground beneath Connor shot up into a pillar, throwing him high into the air. He flipped so he would land on his feet, but a length of stone from the pillar bust loose, flying into his back and knocking him off course. He fell the rest of the way, landing hard on his side.

"Ugh...you son of a bitch..." Connor grunted, sword in hand as he pushed himself back to his feet. Was he losing? It sure felt that way, at the moment.

"Hey, leave my mom out of this!" Masayoshi pointed his quill at his bruised enemy. He was bleeding a little from his mouth, but was otherwise alright.

Connor brought his sword up over his head, plunging it into the stone in front of him.

Masayoshi opened his mouth to speak, but was shut up before he could. The very night turned against him, the darkness becoming violent and the shadows taking on a life of their own. Color practically vanished as the void around him continued to grow, encircling and ensnaring him.

"One of the perks of being grey, kid," Connor stated, watching his opponent look around in surprise at how the darkness was now playing sides, surrounding him with a black veil that was pulsating with malevolence. He was barely visible at all, "Is that when I have to, I can be black."

Masayoshi was flung from his personal sphere of shadows, skidding along the stone ground for a few feet before grinding to a stop. His clothes were torn, and he was bleeding from several fresh cuts. Most were shallow, but a few looked deep enough that they might leave a mark.

"Ready to call it quits?" Connor asked, pulling his sword from the ground. He didn't like to be cruel, but he had been hit enough times that it seemed alright for him to tap into something a little darker than normal.

"H-Ha, ha...not yet," Masayoshi muttered, slowly rising to his feet. He lifted his book back up to his eyes, scanning something in it before looking back up with a little grin, "See my book? It's not just a normal magic book. It becomes whatever book the holder wants it to. Neat, huh?"

Connor shrugged, "Never was much for books, personally."

"But it can be a kind of history book, too. Right now, I'm looking at our fight. I know everything that's going to happen, and I come out on top," Masayoshi grabbed a fistful of pages, jerking them out and throwing them up into the air, "You can't fight fate, Teach!" The pages began to glow a bright blue as they floated around above him.

"There's only one bastard who can preach to me about Fate," Connor growled, thrusting his arm forward as the shimmering pages rocketed forth into neon streaks of magic, "And you're not him!" A stream of fire burst from his palm, and the two attacks exploded in midair.

-

"'Inform' is more accurate," Serac mumbled to himself, watching as Nodoka began to stir from her sleep.

The quiet girl slowly sat up, rubbing her eyes and looking around. Where was she? What had happened?

"We are on a train bound for Osaka, and you were knocked unconscious as I approached you."

Nodoka snapped to attention, staring at the man in a dark cloak in front of her, "Wh-Who a-are y-y-you?" She stammered so bad she could barely understand herself.

"You may call me Serac," The man replied plainly, watching things pass through the window as they sped along. Wait...the windows were frosted over, there was no way he could see outside, at all! Nodoka shivered as she realized just how could it was inside the compartment she found herself in.

"Wh-What's going on? D-Did y-you kidnap me?"

Serac, still looking through the frosted window, replied, "I did not kidnap you, and I will do you no harm." He snapped his fingers, but otherwise did nothing.

"S-So..." She paused, realizing she was now under a warm quilt. It hadn't been there a second ago...had it? "...What's g-going on?"

"I am taking you to Osaka to meet someone. Someone who will change your life."

"B-But I...I like my life th-the way it is..." Nodoka pulled the quilt up over his mouth as she spoke. The man in front of her was scary. She didn't like men in general, but this one was terrifying. What she had felt before she blacked out...it must have been him.

"While that may be true, it is not what you are destined for. Tonight will help you to see things more clearly," The man replied quietly, still gazing through the glazed window.

"Are you a mage?" She up and asked, beginning to think that this man might be an enemy of Negi's. Anyone as off-setting as this man was couldn't possibly be a friend to the young man she loved so much.

"No. Nor am I a friend of the boy, as he has never even met me. I am an acquaintance of your...gym teacher."

"Connor-sensei?" She didn't even ask how he knew that she was thinking of Negi.

"Yes. He and I share a long history together, though he prefers not to speak of it. You may ask him about me, when next you see him."

The librarian sunk into her chair, summoning her artifact beneath the quilt. If Serac noticed this, he showed no signs of it, refusing to tear his eyes from the icy glass beside him, "S-Serac-san," She whispered so quiet that it would have taken magic to hear her. The print on the book flickered to life, and words began to etch themselves across the pages...

_To benefit from this trip, you must be open with me and not resort to such crutches as mind reading._

She looked up from the book beneath the quilt, and nearly squealed in shock to find that Serac was now gazing at her, rather than the window, "If there is something you wish to know, then you have only to ask," He muttered dryly, his tone and expression devoid of all emotion.

Shaking a little as she stared back into his listless eyes, she mumbled, "Y-Y-You're n-not...not a m-mage?"

"As I said before, no, I am not. Neither Connor, nor myself, are mages by your standards. The magic we use is of different origins, and is carried out dissimilarly to that of your own magic."

"C-Connor-sensei uses magic, t-too?" Nodoka's eyes grew a little wider as she heard this.

"Yes. He originally came to Mahora to help protect the people there, which is why he was assigned to assist the boy as an aid. Nearly everyone has seen that he is not particularly knowledgeable in the classroom, as he is quite under qualified for the position. He struggles with even writing Japanese..."

"P-Protect us from what?" Nodoka found that she was gripping her book pretty tightly, her knuckles gone white.

"A demon. That situation has been temporarily remedied, however, and is not something that you need concern yourself with," The Wanderer replied casually, using a finger to brush his bangs aside so their eyes could meet without anything in-between.

"H-How d-do you know Connor-sensei?" She wanted to continue to ask if they were friends, but couldn't grasp the words long enough. Her voice seemed even weaker than it usually did, as though the cold air in the compartment were choking it right out of the space between them.

"We are...acquaintances, not friends," Serac skimmed her mind, picking up the questions that she couldn't quite voice. He told her not to mind read, but there was no reason he shouldn't, "As to how I know him...I served as a guide, of sorts. Certain things needed to happen to keep Fate's design intact, and I led him to these things."

"...Fate?"

"Yes. Understand that Fate is quite real, and I am the one who carries out her designs for this world, and every other. I am her enforcer, and that is why we are here, tonight."

"I...I don't understand...what does this have to do with me? Wh-Where do I fit into any of that?" Nodoka asked quietly, her eyes peeking up from behind the quilt she was trying to hide herself under.

"Allow me to explain it in a manner you can comprehend. You can grasp that there is more than one god," Serac stated, though he was looking at her as though he wanted her to acknowledge a yes.

She nodded a little, waiting for the explanation.

"Fate is one of these gods. To help entertain themselves, the gods asked Fate to come up with a game for them. She happily accepted, and set about constructing life and her script. Once she was satisfied with her script, which took countless millennia for her to write, she set off innumerable sparks in the universe, like the shot of a gun before a race begins. The people of your world refer to this spark as the Big Bang..."

"The planet and all of its surroundings gradually evolved into what we have today, with myself stepping in and correcting any evolutionary 'mistakes' that presented themselves. The dinosaurs come to mind, first and foremost. Many of the other mass extinctions occurred without my assistance, following Fate's script to the last detail..." Serac was talking in a low voice, but sounded like he needed to take a pause to yawn.

"A-Are you t-t-telling me that YOU k-killed the dinosaurs?" Nodoka sputtered, a shaky finger directed at the man sitting across from her.

"Disbelief is an unpleasant thing. Yes, I was responsible for that particular event. Soon, there will be enough science around that no one will ever suspect that any magic played a part in the matter, at all. In that sense, disbelief is a rather convenient thing."

"B-But how can that be? Why would you have needed to fix anything if Fate wrote it? If she's a god, then it should all be perfect...but it's not..." Nodoka wondered aloud, though not too loud.

"A perfect god? Humorous," He said that, but his face showed no signs of a smile at all, "That is why the Christians will never know peace, because they cannot accept that there is no such thing as perfect. They have to save everyone, whether it be through conversion or war. It is a battle that they will never win...but they will never stop fighting for it."

"I, too, am part of Fate's design. If I were to put it in the simplest of terms, it would be akin to a play. Fate is the writer and ultimate creator. I would be the director, making sure that everything in the script happens the way it must to reveal her true design. Humans, as it is now, are the actors in the play, performing their roles for her. Free will is a lie contrived by men to make themselves feel powerful, though, ironically, it often has the opposite effect. They can never do other than what Fate has written for them, and as the director, I see to it that it stays that way. Lastly, the hosts of heaven and hell are the audience to this grand play. That is the simplest way it can be relayed to you, girl," Serac returned to gazing through the window, though the frost only seemed to grow thicker.

Nodoka was watched him in silence for a few minutes, absorbing what she had just heard. It was very possible that this man was a lunatic, and that she was in serious danger. But when she thought back to the moments before she blacked out...the raw power and darkness that had overwhelmed her sense and knocked her out, she found that she was able to believe what he was saying. But if such a man was in charge of running something like this, and there was no such thing as free will...

"Now that you know, you know you can do no wrong. A liberating thought," Serac interrupted her thoughts.

"...I-It's not...now that you've told me all of that, I'm going to think about it when I make decisions...so what I might do in the future will be different..." Nodoka wondered, closing her eyes a little as she tried to think.

"It is so because it was meant to be so. I knew before you were even born that I would tell you this, and I know as a result of this conversation all of the objectively positive and negative effects you will bring about for the rest of your life. At any rate, Connor found not having any choices to be very liberating," Serac mumbled as he began to draw a picture in the frost of the window.

"But we still have choices!" Nodoka exclaimed, standing up and letting the quilt fall to the floor, "You can't expect me to just accept this as infallible, and follow you around like some dog on a leash!"

"I do not expect, I know. After tonight's destined encounter, your life will be forever changed, as will the boy's."

Nodoka exhaled sharply as though Serac had just punched her in the stomach.

"Besides," The Wanderer leaned back in his seat, having completed his doodle of what looked to be a baby, "I already have a dog on my leash that I am quite satisfied with."

-

Connor groaned, sitting in the center of the decimated plaza. His back was resting up against Masayoshi's, who was sitting in the same position, breathing just as hard.

"You're pretty tough...f-for a kid," The man in black admitted with a cough.

"Y-Yeah...right back atcha, man..." Masayoshi replied, spitting out a little blood to the side.

"Why are we fighting...again?"

"Because if I don't get you out of h-here...I'm gonna get in bi-i-i-ig trouble."

"Wh-What? By who?"

"Ah, hell, might as well t-talk about it...'Cause I don't feel like fighting, anymore...I guess my book was wrong..." Masayoshi grunted a little as he dropped the heavy black book beside him, patting it a couple of times as if to console it.

"M-Maybe not...things might still wind up a-alright for you..." Connor stated, glancing over his shoulder at Masayoshi, who returned the motion so that the two were almost eye to eye.

"Y-You offering to help?"

"Explain th-the situation..." Connor swallowed, then coughed again, "And I'll see what can be done..."

_-----Author's other note: Sorry updates have been slow. I'm trying to finish my other story before I settle on this one, but there's only one chapter left in the other, so updates should be getting more frequent, soon._

_So the next chapter should resolve all of the things I've set up in this one and the last one. Nodoka will now be joining the cast of main characters, and she will be given a pretty nice-sized role after Serac's planned encounter._

_Speaking of Serac, for me using his name all over the place as my own is kind of off, because I don't act like him, at all...Oh, and before people decide that they want to bash him for being too strong, it should be noted that while he can do practically anything, he doesn't unless it follows along with Fate's script. He might have Connor on his leash, but he's on Fate's. He has to have other people do things of their own non-existent free will, which he does quite often._

_Thanks for reading...-----_


	7. A Night Designed By Fate Pt 2

_-----Author's note: To everyone who celebrated it, I hope you had a nice Thanksgiving!_

_Serac's in here, and he's as frustratingly omnipotent as ever. Sorry Nodoka has to deal with his crap, but it's to change her life...and there will eventually be a payoff. Please forgive the stereotypes that will be mentioned. I do not own Negima!, but any other characters (Save for Masayoshi) and ideas are my own. Enjoy...-----_

"Ok, remember, no matter what he looks like, he's actually a devious mastermind. He'll stop at nothing to get what he wants, no matter who he has to trample on to get it. He'll use you, your family, your friends, and then throw you away like an old paper cup...or some other disposable thing," Masayoshi muttered behind himself to his newfound ally, looking around as though he were expecting lasers to pop up from the street and start shooting at them.

"Sounds like your everyday politician, to me," Connor replied nonchalantly.

"Now's not exactly the time to be joking..."

"I wasn't joking. We set them on fire if they get out of line, where I come from," The man in black replied casually, following after Masayoshi as he was led to the house of his enemy.

"Where the heck are you from?"

Connor was cursing himself inside for letting that slip. Now he had to lie, "I-I...am from a place...Ah, dammit, it starts with an 'ah' sound..."

"America?"

"No...they only execute prisoners, there...Oh! Africa! That's where I'm from, yeah...Africa. We burn politicians there," He wiped his brow as he remembered an actual place.

"I thought Africans were black?"

"...Really? I-I mean, I AM black...part black...mostly white, but there's black in there. I'm a kind of...mix...you know, like the chocolate vanilla swirl."

The two stopped walking to stare at each other for several seconds, making Connor feel as though he needed to keep talking, which was probably not a good idea.

"R-Really, it's pretty cool. I have the best of both worlds. On one side of it, I made it to six foot, I look good in a bandanna, and ladies are drawn to me like moths to a flame. On the other side, I'll never have a problem getting a desk job, women assume I HAVE a desk job, and women think I'll make for a good provider."

Masayoshi had yet to look away from Connor, or even blink, so the man in black felt compelled to speak even more.

"Th-There's bad stuff that goes with it, too, though. For example...uh...I'd be able to blend in at a trailer park...and...my ancestors were...used unjustly. Uh, b-but then there's the stuff that's kind of in-between. Like, my jumping ability is only average, and...I'm not a great dancer, I just sort of get by..."

Masayoshi was still staring at him, his expression unchanged.

"Yeah," He finally decided to just shut his mouth.

"That's incredible! You're so lucky," The teen smacked Connor on the arm, flashing him an oblivious smile. The two resumed walking, Masayoshi taking his place as leader, again.

'_God, I've been in Mahora too long,'_ Connor thought, grinding his teeth a little, _'All of this bonding and friendship building is making me soft. I seem to remember a time when I would have just told him to shut the hell up and take me to this guy's place...I need to find somewhere where I can be alone, and just brood about life for awhile...'_

The two figures stopped, veiled beneath the inky night sky, and stood before a building that they knew they would soon be marching into. A nearby streetlight buzzed softly as it flickered on and off, the bugs around it vanishing and reappearing under its inconsistent glow. A dull wind picked up just enough to ease a ponytail and bandanna along with it.

"...We done, yet?"

Connor sighed, raising his hand to his forehead, which he massaged a little, "Why did you have to say anything? When the wind dies back down, then we're done!"

"Sorry, I don't get the whole 'posing' thing..." Masayoshi admitted through a grin, rubbing the back of his neck.

"It intimidates the foe!"

"No one's watching."

"It helps to build up some confidence, too..."

"I was more confident before we stopped to wait for a breeze..."

"We've been out here for, like, ten seconds! Are you that impatient?" The breeze died down, "See? Eight seconds longer, you just couldn't be patient..." Connor groaned, sticking his hands in his pockets as he started down the walkway up to the short house.

"If you say so. But remember, we're here for a very serious reason..." Masayoshi stated in a solemn tone that was quite unbefitting him.

"Are you kidding me? Based on what you told me, this whole thing is just a huge joke. I can't believe someone hired you to do this..."

"Blackmailed, not hired."

"Yeah, whatever. I wonder what Freckles would say if she knew all of this was going down..." Connor knocked on the door a few times.

"What would I say about what?" A cute little voice came from behind the two, causing both to spin around at the same time, looking a little surprised. Not in the good way, either.

"N-N-Natsumi-chan! What are you d-doing here?" The teen laughed nervously, his eyes shooting from her to the taller girl beside her.

"Fully-developed girl, too. How's it going?" Connor asked, shooting a grin and wink in her direction.

Chizuru chuckled a little, returning the attention by blowing a little kiss. Connor-sensei was a funny one, at least.

"We're heading back to the dorms from the Astronomy Club," The shorter girl replied, "We saw you two standing out on the sidewalk for a few seconds before you walked up to the house."

"You both looked very cool, before you started talking," Chizuru stated, clapping her hands together and closing her eyes.

"Thank you!" Connor spoke loudly, sending a dirty look Masayoshi's way.

"It was like something out of one of the shows Kotaro-kun likes to watch..."

Masayoshi was still staring at Natsumi, and she had taken notice, turning a little red. _'Oh, wait...' _Connor thought, _'Isn't this bad? She shouldn't be here to find out-'_

The door opened up from behind him, and he wheeled around to come face to face with a rather large boy, about fifteen in age, though he looked to weigh three times what your average teenager weighed. He was wearing a tight shirt which bore a spaceship on the front, and baggy denim shorts. The teen looked at the four people, one at a time, his eyes finally landing squarely on Masayoshi. They narrowed as he spoke in a mucous coated voice, "So it's come to this...fine! We will settle this like real men, once and for all!"

Connor reached into his jacket to pull out his gun, but Masayoshi reached over and grabbed his arm, shaking his head, "W-We have to play on his terms...or else I'm in BIG trouble," He whispered to his friend.

Natsumi and Chizuru looked at what was unfolding before them, both confused and intrigued, "Can we watch?" They asked, their eyes turning wobbly and pleading.

The three guys looked at them, all realizing one thing. They couldn't say no.

-

"Skank."

"Ho."

"Bitch."

"I believe an accurate term for this type of girl is 'floozy'."

Chamo looked at each girl in surprise, though he knew it would be happening. He turned his attention back to Negi and Keiko, who were making their way from her beautiful house down to the stretch limo Negi had managed to get. He and Asuna, Chachamaru, Yue, and Haruna were watching the two from the safety of across the street, behind a few trash cans. All four girls were ready to run across the street and tear the other girl's hair out, but for the sake of not embarrassing Negi, fought off the urges.

"Dammit all to hell, she's hot! Bimbo hot!" Haruna fumed, wringing Chamo out between her tight grip.

"N-Negi-sensei isn't attracted to that kind of girl! He likes smart girls, the best...and looking at her, it's easy to tell she's one of those air heads," Yue tried to console herself, wishing she was a bit more...filled out, just to be safe.

"Ha! Yeah, that's why he sleeps with ME almost every night!" Asuna laughed, folding her arms and looking away indignantly, her pigtails smacking the short philosopher in the face.

"Negi-sensei has been sleeping with me more than you as of late, Asuna-san," Chachamaru stated bluntly, watching as the two entered the limo.

"You mean you've been sleeping with him! You keep crawling into his bed at night!"

"Because he holds me and whispers sweet things to me," The robot replied, "He is safe when he sleeps with me, whereas you always strike him upon waking."

Haruna purred a little, stretching her whip out as she began to think, "I'd like to strike him..."

"Again with the whip?" Yue asked, shying away from the slightly frightening manga artist.

"They're leaving!" Asuna pointed after the limo as it began to drive away, "Come on!"

-

Negi felt a drop of sweat slide down the side of his face as he tried to look at anything other than the girl in front of him. He was terrified that she was just going to drop the idea of dinner altogether and just lunge at him for dessert, right now. The mischievous glint in her eyes suggested that she was considering this course of action. The small curve of her lips into a hungry smirk told him that he was in trouble, and not the fun 3-A kind of trouble, but REAL girl trouble. What was really tripping him up, however, was the fact that he was...if he put it gentlemanly, he was reciprocating the feelings he was actually afraid of.

His eyes traced her long legs back up to her body, which was shown off through her form fitting dress. But it wasn't just any dress, it was a special kind of dress that many men (and Negi, it seemed) loved. The little black dress. It was strange...the longer he stared at it, the more intrigued and fascinated with it he became. It was almost as if...as if the black dress were enchanted by some sort of attraction magic! That must be it! The power of the little black dress was reeling him in! But he wouldn't let it...he would resist the temptation he was feeling that he couldn't fully explain, oh he would resist it like a real man.

"Masa-kun..." Keiko purred softly, leaning forward to give Negi a snapshot down her dress, "Would you like to...turn around and go back to my house? My parents are out at a party, right now, so we could have some time alone..."

The boy in disguise was too busy gawking at the view before him to form any sort of intelligible thought, so he simply sat there in silence. The power of the dress was formidable, indeed.

"...Masa-kun? Is that a yes?"

Negi nodded a little, but caught himself and quickly shook his head no, "U-Um, we sh-should go to the restaurant...Th-The reservation cost me...an arm and a...pair of incredibly sexy legs t-to get, so we should e-enjoy it..." He stammered, not quite sure of everything he had just said.

Keiko grinned, patting her lap for him to come over and sit. As if in a trance, Negi did as he was told. The power of the little black dress was too much for him to handle, after all. Even the magical pheromones that he had heard of couldn't compare...

-

With the help of Chachamaru's boosters and Asuna's raw strength utilized in the form of a piggyback, the group of four managed to keep the limo in their sights as they barreled through the city, attracting confused and, often, frightened looks as they went.

"That way!" Yue shouted from atop Asuna's shoulders, thrusting a finger after the limo as it turned a corner.

"I see it, I see it!" Baka red assured her friend, shoving an unfortunate pedestrian aside and into the street as she raced by. A car veered onto the sidewalk and into the side of a building as it dodged the man in the street. The driver of the car stumbled out, getting a running start away from the vehicle as he feared the worst. He dove forward, covering his head with his hands as the car exploded, sending shrapnel every which way.

One of the mentioned pieces of shrapnel sliced through an oncoming Dodge Viper's front left tire, causing it to lose control and kick up into a roll. The rolling car slammed into a street post, nearly uprooting it from the ground.

Haruna cheered as the limo came screeching to a stop, the driver jumping out to see if everyone was alright, "Alright, screw it! Let's just go take him back!" She jumped off of Chachamaru's shoulders, whip in hand as she dashed for the now motionless limo. Well, almost motionless, it was rocking around a bit.

Takamichi groaned a little as he crawled out from his ruined car, rubbing his head a little as he spotted the culprits of the accident, making a rush for a stretch limo. He could sense some sort of strong magical aura resonating from the limo, and it was making the girls act crazier than usual. He'd have to fix this mess, it looked.

Chachamaru grabbed onto the door that sat between her and her Negi, and ripped it clean off of the vehicle. When she did, the three people next to her all reacted rather differently. Haruna, whip ready to go, dove into the car to become a part of whatever Negi and Keiko had been up to a second ago. Yue made a sort of sneezing sound, which covered a nice portion of the once white limo in a fresh coat of blood. She fell back, eyes swirling around as she started to babble to herself. Asuna's eyes rolled up in the back of her head as she began to foam at the mouth just seconds before collapsing.

Takamichi couldn't help but groan again as his car exploded from behind him, damaging the wiring below ground. The lights for the entire block and a fair distance around it dimmed and went out. He raised his hand, his ring glinting a little as he dispelled the aura that was encircling the people around the limo, "I'll take it you're responsible for this?" He asked the ermine, who was gawking at whatever was going on in the limo.

"I never thought that things would turn out exactly like this, though," The ermine replied, looking around at the destruction.

"You know I could throw you in jail for all of this," The teacher stated seriously, scooping up Asuna and Yue before tackling the confused mess of three inside the vehicle.

"Yes. Yes you could."

-

Nodoka followed after Serac as the train came to a stop, its doors opening up. It was drizzling a little but, despite this, the night air was pleasant enough. Without a word, the Wanderer made his way slowly out from beneath the shelter of the station, and out into the dripping elements. The shy librarian moved to trail after him, but paused at the edge of the station to look up at the sky, and the water falling from it. Well, looked like she was going to have to deal with getting rained on, today. She swung her foot forward to step into the rain, but tripped and fell down onto the wet sidewalk.

"Ow..." She groaned, pushing herself up and looking down at her now moist clothes. A car sped by in front of her all while kicking up water on her as she stood up, turning to find that what she had tripped on had been an umbrella, ironically enough. After looking around a moment to see if anyone was missing one, which they weren't, she picked it up, opened it, and hurried after the man who had brought her here.

He had already gotten across the street and halfway down a city block before she had caught up to him, "I see you found an umbrella. How fortunate for you," The man stated blandly, not bothering to stop, or even to turn and look at her as he spoke.

"Y-Yeah, it was just there on the ground, s-so I grabbed it. Sh-Should I take it back?" The girl asked shyly, afraid she might have done something to upset the cloaked man.

"No. I left it there so you could use it."

"B-But I tripped on it and fell! Why didn't you just give it to me?" Nodoka asked, frowning a little bit.

"Because you were meant to trip and fall."

"Th-That's a mean thing to say..."

"If you had not taken the little bit of time to fall down, the car that passed by in front of you would have struck and killed you. In a sense, I saved your life," Serac turned and walked across the street, but Nodoka was a little slower to follow, this time. She stopped and looked for any cars before crossing the street.

It took her a few minutes to gather the courage to speak, but she eventually did, "Where are you t-taking me?"

"To where you are supposed to go," Serac mumbled, barely audible over the sound of the falling rain. Which, as it passed through him, froze and clinked noisily to the ground.

His vague and unhelpful answer frustrated Nodoka a little bit, but what was she going to say? She was starting to believe that he really did have something important to show her, and if it somehow involved 'the boy', whom she assumed was Negi, then she was definitely going to stick it out to find out.

She followed him through the dark streets for what felt like an eternity, though it only lasted fifteen minutes or so. Serac turned down an alley, motioning for the hesitant girl to follow him.

He stopped in front of a mound of trash bags, lowering himself to a crouching position. Nodoka took her spot behind him, beginning to worry about what was about to happen.

"There is no need to worry, as you are in no danger. However..." Serac grabbed one of the bags, pulling it off of the pile to reveal an arm, "You should be braced for an unpleasant sight."

Nodoka screamed, backing away to the opposite wall of the alley, staring at the limb jutting out of the mound of trash. She pointed at it, dropping her umbrella, "Wh-Wh..."

Serac grabbed the arm, lifting it and its owner up from the garbage. He set the dead woman down gingerly to the ground, letting the light rain rinse some of the blood and garbage from her. He turned an unfeeling gaze to the terror-stricken Nodoka, "Her name was Kaya Aemi. She ran away from home when she was fifteen, coming to Osaka, where she had a friend who offered to take her in. That was two years ago. Seven months ago, her friend left to study abroad. He was set to come back home in a little more than two weeks."

"Wh...Why are you telling m-me this? I-I don't want to see this!" Nodoka stammered loudly. She wanted to look at anything other than what she was seeing, right now, but she couldn't look away. She was transfixed on the dead girl before her, her glassy eyes staring right back into Nodoka's fearful ones. The girl's wrists were bruised a dark blue, and it looked like one of her legs had been broken. Her mouth was concealed under a wrap of duct tape, a grotesque lump in her throat hinting that she had suffocated on something that had been too big for her to swallow.

"There is a reason," Serac reached back into the pile, pulling out a purse. He emptied it out onto the ground, picking out a ring of keys before rising back to his feet, "Come," He started to leave the alley, "We still have an important person for you to meet."

"W-W-We c-can't just leave her here!" Nodoka exclaimed, trying her best to keep her queasy stomach from flipping around any more than it already was, "We h-have to call s-somebody!"

"No. She will be discovered in the morning."

"Y-You just want to leave her here in the rain?"

"Though you can agree that it is better than in a pile of garbage," Serac exited the alley, leaving Nodoka's line of sight as he turned the corner.

The librarian moved to follow him, but was at the same time flipping open her cell phone to call for help. She was upset to hear a computerized voice on the other end saying that she was out of her service area.

"What would you tell them?" A bored voice came from behind her, scaring her half to death. Serac was now behind her, though she had no idea how he had gotten back there without her noticing, "No one will believe why you are out in Osaka, when you should be back in Mahora. Well, Connor would, but he would not be of any help to you. You will only be placing yourself in a difficult position by making such a call. Now come. There is the meeting to think of."

As the two resumed their walk, Serac continued to speak so that Nodoka didn't get the chance to, "The girl was part of an occultist group known as the Angels. The matriarch of this band of revolutionists was recently silenced, and the cult disbanded. Most people who had been a part of the group returned to their lives, while others refused to let go of what they believe could have been. Those who have left the path of the Angels have been branded traitors. Kaya was killed by two such fanatics for her transgressions against the mother, though it is better that you do not ponder over what transpired shortly before her final breath. It is rather unpleasant, by your own standards."

Shivering a little at the thought of cult killings, Nodoka choked down anything she had wanted to say, just then.

"You wonder what she was doing out past eleven by herself. She needed to pick something up from the store at the corner. That is all."

"What did she need at eleven at night?" Nodoka asked, rubbing the water out of her eyes. She didn't know this person, but seeing anyone dead was traumatic.

Serac led her to an apartment complex, up a few flights of stairs, and to a door. The noise coming from the other side of the closed and locked door caused Nodoka's heart to jump up into her throat, and her stomach to sink lower than she thought possible.

He reached up to the scrap of paper stuck to the green wooden door, grabbing the seal with a tight hand. He ripped it off, a brief shimmer resonating through the door and nearby walls as he did, destroying the ward that had been set up. Serac stuck the key into the lock, opening the door to reveal the sound for what it really was. Over the sound of the infant's crying, the Wanderer stated bluntly, "She needed baby formula."

_-----Author's other note: Serac is so much fun..._

_And, lest I forget to say; Masayoshi is Master Masa Random's OC! Read his writing, it's good. And if I think it's good, well, it MUST be. Not that I think too highly of my own opinions..._

_Thanks for reading...-----_


	8. A Night Designed By Fate Pt 3

_-----Author's note: I do not own Negima!, but any other characters (save for Masayoshi) and ideas are my own. Enjoy...-----_

The two people stood outside of the apartment for well over a minute, listening to the sound of the baby crying. Nodoka was staring at Serac as though she could find some sort of solution to this mess in his eyes, and he was staring at her, waiting patiently for her to do what he knew she would.

When the crying became too much for her to let slide by anymore, she entered the small home and went towards the sound of the infant. Serac followed after, but did not pursue her into the little bedroom the mother and child had shared.

The librarian slowly opened up the door to the room containing the crying child, and crept in as though she were walking on sacred ground. Her shoes had been abandoned at the door, as had her wet socks. The short carpet felt cold beneath her bare feet, probably because having Serac so close was killing the temperature.

The room, itself, was a wreck. The bed sheets and cover were scattered around the room, dirty clothes lay strewn about, and the smell of decaying food permeated the air with its pungent scent. Sure enough, in the center of the slovenly bed, a crying baby lay on its back, wailing like there was no tomorrow.

Nodoka cautiously crawled onto the bed, scooping the baby up to try and console it. As if there was no such thing as crying anymore, the baby ceased its crying as the librarian nestled it against her, scooting to the edge of the bed to go and speak with Serac.

She found him standing amongst the clutter of the apartment, watching a rather large bug crawl along the wall, "Is it not interesting how life played out for the child you're carrying?"

"It's...It's terrible..." Nodoka replied meekly from the doorway to the bedroom.

"Perhaps. The young woman who bore this girl was too afraid to tell the father that she was pregnant and, as such, he has no idea he has a daughter. That is why he went to study abroad. He did not know that he had this kind of responsibility."

"S-So it was her friend who was the dad?"

"It was. Had she told him she was pregnant with his child, he would never have left. How differently do you think things would have been had he chosen to stay here in Osaka, as opposed to how they actually happened?" Serac asked, his eyes still tracing the movements of the bug on the wall, "Quite differently, really."

Nodoka's mind was shot, and her emotions were starting to get confused, as well. What was she supposed to do with the baby? Surely it had relatives who would gladly take it in.

"Do not forget that Kaya was a runaway, which she became for a reason. Her family does not know of her whereabouts or of her child. The father does not know of the infant, either. As to what you are to do with the child...You already know the answer to that question," Serac stopped watching the bug as it crawled down to the floor and vanished into a box of old takeout.

Nodoka shook her head fiercely, though she was careful to keep the now silent baby as still as she knew how, "I can't! I'm just a junior-high student! Th-There's no w-way I can raise a b-b-baby!"

"You can, and you will. It is not as though you must do it alone. Actually, you are not meant to do it alone."

The shy girl tried to open her mouth, but it was already hanging open, so that proved to be a useless motion. Her voice had seemed to fail her, as well, so Serac took charge of the conversation.

"Yes, I am referring to the boy, Negi. He will help you in watching over the child..." The Wanderer skimmed over her thoughts, ready to pick apart every little problem she could have with the situation, "As far as legal issues go, rest assured that I will tend to them. A few close friends to the mother are all that know of the infant, and I will make it as though the child never existed, to them."

"How to explain the baby to your friends will be taken care of by Connor, and he and Negi will be able to provide for the child through their teaching salaries. You will be able to continue your education, as well. You will find yourself spending a fair deal more time with the boy, as he will take a liking to the baby girl fairly quickly. Not having his father around has made him realize how much a father means, and he will do everything he can to help the child," Serac knew he had just sold the baby, "As should you."

Nodoka stepped back out into the main room of the apartment, knowing she had to do what was being suggested. He was right about Negi, he would do everything he could to help the little girl. If the girl really didn't have anywhere to go, wouldn't it be wrong of her to leave her alone in the apartment? She could leave an anonymous call to the authorities, sure, but...

"I am pleased you understand the situation," Serac raised his hand, fingers poised to snap, "By the way, make sure that you take him to the infirmary, as opposed to the hospital. The bleeding looks worse than it really is," He snapped his fingers, the librarian and infant both vanishing. He turned his gaze back over to the bug, which was once again visible. It scurried over to a puddle of liquid splattered onto the kitchen floor, stopping at the edge to sip at it. The Wanderer recalled in his mind's eye at how the mother had seen the bug while pouring the baby formula, and dropped it in her surprise.

"How unfortunate," He whispered, snapping his fingers, causing the bug to vanish. His illusion now dispersed, Serac moved for the door, locking it behind him as he left to complete the other tasks he had set before him.

-

"Connor-sensei! Connor-sensei, you've got to get up!" Chizuru pleaded, down on her knees before her wounded teacher.

Connor forced a laugh, clutching the gaping hole in his chest, "You have to go on...go on without me..."

The girl shook her head, tears starting to mist her eyes.

"Don't worry...you're strong. Maybe even stronger than me...you can do it," He turned a little to look at Natsumi, who was looking equally distressed, "You both can...y-you just...have to...b-believe..." And with those words, life faded from his eyes, and he went limp in Chizuru's arms.

"No-o-o-o!" Chizuru cried, pulling him close and burying her face in his chest, "Don't take him away from us!"

Masayoshi applauded the two a little bit, "Ooh, nice job."

Chizuru laid Connor back down, flashing him a smile as she wiped away the little tear resting in the corner of her eye, "This is fun!" She exclaimed.

"But now that I'm dead, you guys are in a bad spot..." Connor stated seriously, sitting back up and rejoining the group around the table, "If only I had rolled a better number..." He shot a pissed off glance at the dice before him.

"You were doomed the second you accepted my challenge, weaklings!" The large teen stated, a solemn expression over his face, "As the game master, I have never once lost!"

"Shut up, Shinji, no one asked you," Connor snapped.

Chizuru snatched up her leek out from beneath the table, "To avenge Connor-sensei's death, I'll get serious, now!"

"I-Is that...it can't be..." Shinji exhaled sharply, flipping through the rule book, "It is! Th-the suppository leek!"

Natsumi grabbed the rule book away from the game master, gawking at the rule before her, which she read aloud, "Whomever possesses the fabled suppository leek weapon becomes indestructible, with a +407 to their attack roll. ...Who wrote this?"

Masayoshi coughed a little, pretending to be interested in a spaceship model across the dark basement they were currently playing in.

"Damn, you should have brought that out before I died!" Connor groaned, finding himself rather pleased with the look of shock on Shinji's rotund face.

"I...I must surrender..." The teen admitted quietly, lowering his head.

"Alright! Awesome, we won!" Masayoshi exclaimed, jumping up and throwing his fists into the air, "Girls, go wait for us outside, he gave up! We'll be right there!"

Once the two girls were gone, Shinji sent a downtrodden look to Masayoshi, "I never thought that things would end this way..."

"But they did, so tough! Now, I believe you should be handing me a little something something, right about now..."

Shinji rose from his chair, leaving the room and coming back a few moments later with a briefcase. He set it on top of their game, "There. They're all in there."

Masayoshi didn't even need to open it to check. His book had been right, after all! Everything did end up alright for him. He set his hand on the briefcase, relieved to no end as it warped and vanished in a flash of blue light. "Ah, no more blackmailing. Life is good..."

"What was in there?" Connor asked, disappointed that he didn't get to see.

"...Ok, I'll tell you, but you've gotta swear you'll never repeat it, alright?" After getting the nod to go ahead, Masayoshi explained, "One time, at a New Year's Eve party, I got a little tipsy, and kissed a friend. A friend that I call 'big sis'. ...Don't look at me like that, it was really awkward! Some ass hole took pictures, and Shinji here wound up with them. He threatened to post them on the internet if I didn't do what he wanted..."

"That's it? God, I was thinking it was something...you know, important."

"And now I'll never have Natsumi-chan..." Shinji whined, "It's all your fault! Why couldn't you just cooperate?"

Masayoshi shrugged off the finger aimed at him.

"...I can't believe this," Connor muttered, "For a crush...you went through all of the trouble of blackmailing Masayoshi...so he could ask Natsumi out for you?"

"It was a perfect plan! He would earn her trust and faith, and then introduce us! Even set us up on a date for the festival! But now it's all ruined..."

"Yeah, it kind of is. You wound up getting introduced to her, but not until after she fell head over heels for Masayoshi. ...For some reason, I haven't figured it out, yet..." Connor started to trail off, but was brought back to attention when Masayoshi punched his shoulder, "Ow. Uh, right. You should have just introduced yourself. It would have saved me a lot of time..."

"How can you say that?" Shinji asked, his finger now directed at Connor, "Have you seen her? She's the most perfect example of beauty that there ever was! Every weeknight she walks by here on her way back home with her friend from the Astronomy Club, and every night I try! I just can't approach such divine cuteness! I thought that if I could just get Masayoshi to get the ball rolling...I'm just too shy..."

"Maybe that's because you're down here in your parent's basement, playing board games and building model ships while watching old Star Trek episodes," Masayoshi suggested, "But it's not all lost. She's met you, now, and she seemed to have a pretty good time playing the game. Maybe if you joined the Drama Club, or something, you'd have a better shot..."

Shinji seemed to mull this thought over. It didn't seem too bad, when he thought about it.

"Hey, wait, you're supposed to hook up with Freckles!" Connor stated, casting a disapproving gaze to Masayoshi for the advice he was giving.

"Supposed to? What are you talking about?"

"Ok, you know what?" Connor started up the stairs to leave the basement, "To hell with it. I don't care anymore, screw it. I'm going home."

Masayoshi muttered a goodbye to Shinji, hurrying after his friend, who was complaining to himself about how Fate was pissing him off. He caught up to him before they reached the door, and caught him by the shoulder, "Hey, hey, check it out!" Masayoshi flashed Connor a tape recorder, "Now we can help Shinji get with Natsumi-chan!"

"Everything that he said about Freckles is on that?" The teaching aid asked, pointing at the little device. Masayoshi nodded, a big grin plastered onto his face like he had just done something good. Connor snatched the object from the teen, snapping it in half with his bare hands.

The two watched the remains of the recorder fall to the ground, neither saying anything for a few seconds, before Masayoshi piped up, "Why did you do that?" He asked, now holding an exact replica of the tape recorder in his other hand.

"What the..." Connor took and busted the second one in a similar fashion, "No magic, kid, no magic. I see two options available. 1. Let Freckles listen to this so she gets the biggest confidence boost of her life, because she'll know that there's some guy out there who worships the ground she walks on. Hell, I wouldn't be surprised if Shinji would take gum from the bottom of a bench if she left it there, because I'm assuming he's genuinely crazy about her, which could very well cause him to act genuinely crazy. The downside of this option is that I can see Freckles settling for this guy, when I know she can do a lot better. Sure, Shinji may very well one day end up being incredibly rich, as is the case with many nerds of his caliber, but I don't think she'd ever fall in love with him. This brings me to option number two."

He sent Masayoshi a look that practically told him that HE, himself, was option number two. Masayoshi just couldn't see it, however, so with a sigh, Connor continued, "2. Freckles is already IN love, and I want to see that happen! I think it's actual love, too, not that fake schoolgirl crush thing that everyone has for me. Because the person that Freckles is in love with isn't anything like me, so we can avoid the whole 'likes him because he's so awesome' dead end. The entire reason I even did any of this was to help Freckles with her crush situation, which makes me more of a wuss than I ever thought I could be. I, at one point in time, thought that it was physically and psychologically impossible for me to be this much of an effeminate board game playing school teacher. I have definitely gone downhill..." Now finding himself spiraling into self pity, another trait he disliked, Connor lowered his head and reached for the doorknob.

By grabbing the older guy's wrist, Masayoshi successfully stopped this from happening, "Hey...everything you just said...and what you said back in the basement...you weren't serious, were you? That's not all about me, right?"

Connor raised his hand to his mouth, acting like he was talking into a receiver, "This is the clue train, last stop: you," He stopped talking into his hand, smacking the back of Masayoshi's head, "Of course it's been about you, you ponce! I...oh my God, did I just call you a ponce? Negi's British must be starting to affect me..."

"S-So Natsumi-chan...you think she's in love with...m-me?"

"God dammit, I think I'm starting to want tea more than booze, too! Son of a bitch, next thing you know I'm gonna be wanting crumpets, too! Whatever the hell those are. Then I'm gonna start saying 'bloody' all over the place, and before you know it; I won't go to the bathroom anymore. Nope, I'll be calling it 'the loo'. For the love of me, just kill me right now..." He was pacing back and forth, completely ignoring Masayoshi.

"Hey!" The teen slapped Connor in the chest, bringing him to a stop, "This has all been about me?"

"Didn't we already do the clue train bit gone horribly wrong? Natsumi, the girl waiting for us outside, currently has a pretty good crush on you, Masayoshi. I did what I could to try and nudge things along in that direction, namely, getting her the lead in the play. Things kept getting **Screwed Up**, however, so I wound up being distracted with everything else. If **Messed Up** was enough of a means to describe this entire sequence of events, I would use it. But it's not, so forget it, I'm going home," Thoroughly pissed with everything, Connor flung open the door and marched past Natsumi and Chizuru, who turned confused looks to a now beet red Masayoshi.

-

A groan escaped the boy's lips as he slowly opened his eyes. Negi looked around, confused. Where was he? His back was resting against a wall, opposite a door. The names beside the door told him that he was looking at his own dorm room. Chachamaru and Asuna were on either side of the boy, both slumped against him. What had happened? His mind was a blur...but he was back home, and so were Asuna and Chachamaru, so everything must have gone alright. Maybe he just got tired from the date, and fell asleep outside of the room...maybe. Yue and Haruna were sitting in front of their own door, not too far away.

Connor spotted the group of five as he came down the hall. God, it was almost midnight, what were they all doing sitting outside? Hopefully the date hadn't gone THAT bad.

He helped the groggy boy to his feet, "What's going on?"

"I-I don't really know...I hope the date went alright..."

The two stirred everyone, save for Asuna, from their sleep, the noise drawing Ku Fei from her room as they did.

"Where you been? I waiting for you!" She exclaimed, sending Connor a worried look.

"Ha, ha, nowhere, don't worry about it. Come on, let's get this one into her room," He replied, grabbing Asuna and pulling her up with Ku Fei's help. Negi opened his door, but froze when he saw who was in there. Yue and Haruna took a good long stare, as well.

Sitting on Chachamaru's bed was Nodoka, who was staring back at them with wide eyes and a red face. In her hands, she held what appeared to be a baby. Upon further staring, it was revealed to be, in fact, a baby.

"N-Nodoka-san! Whose baby is that?" Negi asked, recovering from his surprise impressively fast.

Nodoka's eyes instantly shot to Connor, which caused everyone else to look at him. The man in black was still gawking at Nodoka, although now it was because it looked like everyone expected an answer from him. He didn't know whose bloody baby it was! ...Yeah, there it was. He was starting to use 'bloody'. He quickly put a lid on his thoughts when Nodoka mouthed a single word to him, one that he wouldn't mistake for any other, simply because he knew what it meant. 'Serac'.

"Uh...yeah, uh..." He started to mumble a little bit, "That's uh..." He knew what he was about to say was what he was supposed to say, but it really didn't feel like the right thing to go with, "God dammit...yeah, that kid would be mine. I asked Library Girl here to watch-"

Cut off by Ku Fei's fist connecting with his face, Connor flew back and into the wall, immediately unconscious and bleeding profusely all over the floor. No one had to stop her, however, because she blacked out the second after he hit the floor. Haruna followed suit.

"U-Um...j-just take him to the infirmary..." Nodoka whispered softly as the baby started to cry.

_-----Author's other note: The Masayoshi arc now draws to a close, and his stardom in the story will now fade away. For those who didn't catch it, Screwed Up is the original story that Masayoshi stars in (well, in Negima! Fanfiction), and Messed Up is the sequel to it (and an alternate sequel to The Dreamer). Anyway, thanks to Master Masa Random for allowing me use of his character, and I hope everyone enjoyed his rather lengthy cameo._

_I will now take suggestions (ie, a girl you want to see used) for the final two days before the festival begins, or I could just skip on to the festival and deal with Chao and her issues. I was kind of hoping I'd know what she actually wanted before writing this, but who knows how long that could take? Anyway, thanks for reading...-----_


	9. Dreams Do Come True

_-----Author's note: I hope you all had a rocking Decemberween! Decemberween is the politically correct way of me saying 'happy holidays' to everyone, regardless of what you're celebrating._

_Holy crap, it's been nearly a month since I updated this story! Sorry, you few people who care! I've been keeping busy with other stuff, though. Mating Season's all done, now, and that had taken a lot of my spare time (Five hundred reviews, thank you world! Ambrant and Raedric, too!). Plus, I was busy with school...not really, I've been on break all December. I DID make Dean's list, though, for the Fall quarter, so it's not like I don't put time into studying...I pretty much just wanted to say I made Dean's list. Anyway, break ends January second, so I'll be a full time student again, soon. Whether or not that affects writing remains to be seen, as college algebra may very well kick my ass, a feat once thought to be impossible._

_I do not own Negima!, but any other ideas and characters are my own. Enjoy...-----_

"Sunshine...look, I'm sorry..."

"You not sorry! Why...Why you do that? Why you lie to me?"

The look of hurt in her eyes was killing him. What made it all worse was that he was lying to her right now. He had never seen that baby before in his life. His mouth open just slightly, Connor found himself struggling with what to say. Lying in the nurse's office, he found himself only able to look at her from across the room with sad eyes.

Ku Fei turned around so she didn't have to see his face. Or rather, to hide the tears forming in her eyes. She had marched into the room, prepared to not only physically beat him, but to also morally reprimand him. But when it came time to do it, she found the words near impossible to grasp, and getting anywhere near him appeared to be impossible.

"Say something," She demanded, the strength in her voice barely covering up the hurt.

Wishing he was anywhere else but where he was, Connor lowered his bandaged head back down onto his pillow, "I wish I could tell you what you want to hear, but..."

She let her head droop a little upon hearing him say that. What had she been hoping for? The silence between the two lasted for a few seconds. The entire time he was praying she'd just turn around and tell him it was ok, that she forgave him, that things would stay the same. He wanted her to say that he meant enough to her that she could get by this. He wanted her to say anything, and this time it was his turn to ask of her.

"Say something..." He got it out, but it barely broke whispering.

Ku Fei dipped into her pocket, slowly taking out a piece of paper, which she crumpled up into a little ball. When she turned to throw it at him, he could see the tears glistening on her cheeks, "You a monster."

He glanced at the bit of paper sitting on the bed, recognizing it as the letter he had left before his excursion to the Tatsumiya shrine. Ku Fei slammed the door shut behind her as she ran off.

Connor opened his eyes, exhaling a little harder than he had meant to. Nodoka was now in the room, a little blush on her face as she realized she had closed the door a little too loud, "I'm sorry, Connor-sensei, did I wake you up?"

Had he been dreaming? His throat was raw, and his head was throbbing. He shook his head a little to tell her 'no'.

"W-Were you crying?" The girl asked timidly, sitting down beside him in the little fold up chair that was left for guests.

The slightly drowsy man turned his head to look at her, not surprised to find honest-to-God concern in her eyes. He ran his sleeve across his face, "You're too nice for your own good, love. What are you doing here?"

"I just...I came to talk to you."

"If it's anything about me, then no. I know, normally I would be the best topic to discuss, but I'm not in the mood, right now."

"Connor-sensei..."

"How many times do I have to tell you people not to call me that? For the love of-"

"It's about the baby."

With a sigh, the PE instructor replied, "Which is, unfortunately, tied in with me, so no."

"And Serac-san."

His eyes now closed, Connor sighed yet again, "How do you know him?"

Nodoka's hands were folded neatly on her lap as she looked on intently at the man before her, her mind falling back to the day before, "He took me from the library, and then took me to Osaka."

"No doubt he spewed a bunch of garbage about Fate and life on the way. What a tool."

"He did. He told me that I am supposed to take care of the baby w-with...Negi-sensei..." She whispered the last part so quietly that Connor barely heard her. Her face was now lowered to her hands, which were fidgeting with one another.

"So he played the crush card, huh? Did he tell you that you'd both fall madly in love while bonding with the baby, and would live happily ever after, too? He's setting you up for a fall. You need to stay away from him. He's a never ending train wreck of problems, and I don't want you anywhere near him," Connor opened his eyes as he said this, giving her a serious look to help try and get his point across.

The shy librarian looked away from his stern eyes, "H-He didn't say we would live happily ever after. But I think...maybe it can work like that..."

"Oh, really? And where exactly do I fit into the equation? After all, Negi and the whole 3-A gang thinks this kid is mine, right?"

"Not everyone knows about it, yet..."

"Don't kid yourself. Gossip-girl was there, everyone knows by now," Connor motioned to the window, the early morning sun hanging low in the sky, "And if they don't, they will by the time the bell rings. If I'm taking care of MY kid, how are you and Negi gonna play house?"

Reaching into her pocket, Nodoka's shaky hand brought out a sheet of paper. She offered it to him, her face red and her hand trembling.

Connor, rather ungracefully, snatched the paper from her and skimmed it over, "What the hell is this?"

"It's f-from the headmaster...He spoke with Serac-san, last night. After he sent me back home, I think. I went to see him this morning to talk to him about the baby, and he already knew everything that was going on, and gave me that."

"Still haven't told me what it is," Connor pointed out, sitting upright and swinging around so his legs were hanging over the side of the bed.

"When you sign it, you'll be signing over the baby to me, and relinquishing all rights as her father," The look on Nodoka's face told him that she was having a hell of a time telling him to do that.

"I'm not her real father. How can I relinquish rights I don't even have?"

"According to all of the paperwork, you ARE her father. Serac-san said he would take care of everything, and it looks like he did. The headmaster will receive legal custody of the baby, and she'll be living on campus with me."

"Sunshine's no doubt already pissed at me for this mess, but what would she think of me if I did that? What kind of person would do that? Write off their kid like some piece of trash they don't want anymore?"

"It's really not so bad...she'll understand when you explain it all to her..."

Connor slapped his hand holding the paper down onto the mattress, "I'm never going to explain this to her, and neither are you!" He was raising his voice slightly, and Nodoka was forcing herself to not shrink away, "I never want her to know what's really going on!"

"B-But why not? She'll forgive you if she finds out the truth..."

"I..." He found himself looking at the piece of paper, and right after that he found himself fishing out his pen to sign it, "I'd rather have her hate me...than have her know anything about Serac..."

He handed the now signed paper back to Nodoka, who accepted it, even if regretfully, "Why? Is he really so bad?"

"That bastard ruined my life, and I'm not gonna be the window that gets him into Sunshine's. No way in hell," He slid over the side of the bed, landing on bare feet, the cold floor sending a chill up his legs. Stepping passed Nodoka to get his socks and boots, he muttered, "I was never a good match for her, anyway."

"She's really upset...she ran off to the dojo last night. I think you should go talk to her. If you're not going to tell her the truth, at least say you're sorry. I think it'll mean a lot to her, even though she might not say it," Nodoka rose from her chair, stopping at the foot of the bed to watch Connor slide his boots on, "I know it's none of my business, but...what did Serac-san do that made you hate him so much?"

Connor finished tying his boots, and grabbed his coat from the hanger on the wall as he passed Nodoka on his way to the door, "It's what he didn't do," He muttered, slamming the door shut behind him.

-

Back and forth, back and forth...

Negi couldn't help but smile as he watched Chachamaru cradling the baby in her arms, gently swaying back and forth as she hummed a song he couldn't place. He wanted to ask her what it was, but saying anything and breaking the tranquility of the moment would be a crime, and one he wasn't willing to commit. They were sitting side by side on her bed, Konoka's old one, just soaking in the peaceful atmosphere. Asuna was out doing her deliveries, and class wouldn't start for another couple of hours.

It was amazing. He was watching her take care of the baby like it just came naturally to her. He knew she was incredible before, but seeing her in this new setting just brought his admiration of his student to a new plateau. There weren't many other people he would want by his side in a fight, and there weren't many people he would want by his side in life, either. She was amazing.

As he traced her careful arms up to her shoulders and up her neck to her face, he found thin streams of liquid meandering their way down from her eyes. Her usually expressionless face had just a hint of sadness in it as she continued to hum, gazing at the baby in her arms.

"What's wrong, Chachamaru-san? Are you ok?" He asked before even realizing he had spoken.

The android turned her head a little to look at the boy beside her, finding it made her feel no better, no matter how much she appreciated that he cared enough to ask. Indeed, she only felt worse when her eyes met his.

"Negi-sensei...I am sorry, I just...Seeing and holding the infant makes me...It is just another thing I know I cannot have, and it hurts. I know it is strange, because at one time, such things did not matter to me. Over time, though, time with...with you...has made me..." She stopped talking, her throat freezing up as the coolant in her systems tried to fight off the threat of overheating. Her face had taken on a reddish color.

Negi shook his head, "It's not just because of me, Chachamaru-san. Remember when Asuna-san and I followed you, and found you doing all of those nice things for people? You were always kind, and you've only gotten kinder. That you would want a baby of your own just tells me that you're just as normal and human as everyone else. Ha, ha, actually, if everyone was more like you, we would all be better off. Chachamaru-san, I'm sure that one day you'll have a baby of your own," The young teacher gave her an encouraging smile.

At the sight of the young boy's smile, coupled with his kind words, Chachamaru was pretty sure that something in her chest had short-circuited. Or imploded. She surely shouldn't have such feelings, even with the gradual upgrades Hakase had been administering. Maybe there was something more to her then even she knew. After all, she was powered by both science and magic, and magic was oftentimes unpredictable.

"Do you really think that?" Chachamaru asked, averting her eyes from the boy, staring back down at the baby. If she continued to look at Negi, she wasn't sure any amount of coolant would save her from malfunctioning.

"Of course I do. I can tell you'll be a great mother, one day..." Negi was now seriously considering talking to Hakase about constructing a baby for Chachamaru. Chachamaru might not be able to have one the conventional way (which he still wasn't a hundred percent clear on), but she deserved one as much as anyone else did, if not more so.

"But...it would not be right of me to raise a child by myself..." Chachamaru found herself stepping out into prodding for some kind of hint from Negi that maybe he would be interested in filling the father role for her, one day.

"I know what you mean. My sister raised me all by herself. She had a few helping hands along the way, but I'm sure it was really hard on her. I never knew where my dad was, and my mom..." Negi's face went a little sad, "I never knew her, and Nekane never talked about her. For all I know, she could be somebody I passed by in the streets back home every day, she could be...not alive...anymore, I don't know. But...Chachamaru-san, I'll bet that when you take the risk and really show the world who you are, there would be thousands of men lining up to be with you."

Chachamaru, even though she knew it wasn't a great idea for her stability, lifted her eyes back up to her teacher's.

"It doesn't matter what you're made of," Negi stated, love and care clearly visible in his eyes, "Because I know you're as human as I am."

A feeling she was both afraid of and loved took control, and Chachamaru found herself leaning over and pressing her lips against Negi's. It was wonderful. He had said that she needed to take the risk and show people who she was, and this felt like a huge risk. There was no way she would have traded that moment for anything, though, and she was particularly careful to make sure it was all being recorded. It only got better when she felt Negi's initial shock fade away as he returned the kiss. What a wonderful-

The dorm room door opened up, and a rather stunned librarian found herself speechless at the sight before her. It took her several seconds of wide-eyed staring before Nodoka could get out even one word, "N-Negi?" She asked, tears forming in her eyes.

-

"Stay down or I'll break your neck, next," Connor growled, breathing heavy as he leered down at the teen he had just thrown to the ground. The guy's arm was quite obviously broken, jutting out at an unpleasant angle from the elbow. Connor had blood trickling down the side of his head, and he wasn't positive, but he may have fractured something in his left leg. The tens of men lying on the ground all around him weren't doing any better, though, and most were unconscious.

Still surrounded, one of the men in a black uniform pointed at him, "You broke chairman Fei's heart, so now we're gonna break your legs!"

A second one, this guy behind Connor, added, "Anyone who would make her cry is a monster! You couldn't hurt her physically, so you went and hurt her emotionally!"

A third fighter, this in front of him but a little to his left, spouted, "You're disgusting!"

"I'm gonna talk to her even if I have to pop off each of your heads to do it. So either back the hell off, or get ready to have your ass handed to you with all the trimmings. Your choice."

Ku Fei watched from inside the dojo as Connor was swallowed up in the waves of pissed off men who had spent a lot of last night trying to make her feel better. Chao was by her side, and she asked, "Are you ok?"

Ku Fei nodded, but didn't say anything.

"You know, he hasn't used any magic. You think it's some sort of gesture?"

Ku Fei shook her head, remaining silent.

"I think you should go talk to him. At least stop them from killing each other," Chao added, watching as a man in a red uniform flew up into the air, landing on a nearby roof, his back breaking his fall.

The blonde Chinese girl burst outside, which caused everyone to stop moving at once, all eyes falling onto her. Two guys were holding onto Connor's arms, and one was clinging to his leg. The PE teacher's other leg was holding him up, an opponent's head resting beneath his boot, the head's owner whimpering a little.

"Go inside!" Ku Fei shouted, pointing towards the dojo.

"But chairman-"

"Go!"

No more words. Connor found himself quite alone out in the warm morning with Ku Fei, all of his enemies, even the ones he had defeated, were gone. It looked like the girl he had always been so casual with commanded a bit more respect than he thought. The sky was very slowly getting brighter as the sun made its way higher and higher.

"Sunshine, I think we should talk about last night..." Connor stated, waiting to see what she would say, do...hell, he wished he could just see what she was thinking. Her face was expressionless, which was something he honestly hadn't anticipated. He had expected tears, anger, sadness, confusion, betrayal, something, anything. The plateful of nothing he was being handed, though, felt worse than everything else he had braced for. The thought that he didn't have any visible affect on her was awful, no matter how selfish of him that was, that's what he felt.

"Say she not yours, tell me where she come from," The girl spoke quietly her eyes locked on his, though they betrayed no feelings.

Exhaling deeply, Connor told her what Nodoka said he should, "I'm sorry," He stated softly. It was true as all hell, even if it had been a suggestion from the meek librarian.

That was when the fifteen foot gap between the two was no longer enough. Ku Fei's face lost its expressionless veil, and her bottom lip quivered as she turned to walk away, dropping a wad of paper as she did, "You a monster," She muttered just loud enough for him to hear.

Ignoring the feeling that he had just been punched in the stomach, he moved to stop her. In that dream he had gone through she had left the note he gave her, and he was willing to bet that the wad of paper on the ground, now, was that same note. He wasn't going to let it happen the same way, though. He had to at least try to make it end differently.

The space between them lost beneath his quick steps, Connor caught her by the arm, "Ku Fei...I lo-"

He was silenced when she whipped around and swung her open hand across his face.

"She slapped him..." Chao mumbled, just as surprised as the cluster of men around her, all watching the scene unfold from the dojo.

The tears in her eyes and on her cheeks told Connor that he did have an affect on his student, but it only made him feel worse than he did moments ago. Releasing her arm, he didn't bother to turn and face her.

"I want you move out," Ku Fei sniffled, continuing towards the dojo, not looking back.

The door to the dojo slammed shut, leaving the man in black alone out in the early morning.

_-----Author's other note: That Chachamaru/Negi scene was pretty good, wasn't it? Then I had to screw it up at the end, like that. Connor's got his share of problems, too. The melodrama and young love issues promise to continue as I think to the future..._

_By the way, I haven't named the baby, yet! Nodoka's going to name it, but since I don't have a good feel for Nodoka thinking, I don't know what to do. If anyone has a good baby name to use, please tell me!_

_Thanks for reading...-----_


	10. A Father Figure

_-----Author's note: For those of you who noticed, yes, I did change my name. True Serac seemed a little too feminine. If only plain old 'Serac' wasn't taken...Serac plays a prominent role in this chapter, so for those who don't like him, I apologize. _

_I do not own Negima!, but any other characters and ideas are my own. Enjoy...-----_

"Why won't you just leave me alone?"

"No matter what world you exist in, no matter what you do or say, we are connected by Fate. So long as you need guidance, I will always be the one to guide you."

Alone with Fate's Enforcer in the abandoned clock tower by Asakura's grave, Connor managed to find yet more displeasure in his foul company. Talking to him was pointless, but he always found himself doing it, "I never asked for your guidance, and I sure as hell don't want it."

"Then it is a good thing that your opinion is not important," Was the cold response he got. The corner of the eroding building Serac was standing in seemed darker than the rest of the room, the light almost bending to avoid coming close to him.

"I'm leaving Mahora. I've already quit," The man in black stated bluntly, though he waited to see the response he would get.

Without revealing any expression at all, Serac replied, "I know."

"What, that's it? What about that whole load about me having to 'do Fate's will' here?"

"You have done more than you know, and have accomplished the tasks laid out for you already."

"So why don't you tell me what I've done, oh omnipotent one?" Connor put a hand to the wall and used it to hold himself up as he leered across the room, waiting for the response.

Taking only enough time to blink once, the Wanderer started off a list, "You have helped the Murakami girl feel as though she is special, and have found her a relationship with the Hitodama boy. During the course of your poorly founded date plan, the girls in pursuit of the Springfield boy were the cause of a traffic accident. In this accident, a building was practically destroyed when a car exploded. This building was a privately owned business, run by one Eiji Akashi."

"...Isn't one of Negi's students-"

Cutting him off, Serac continued, "Eiji is the brother to an instructor at Mahora, who happens to have a daughter known as Yuna Akashi, yes. The insurance settlement that Eiji will receive is enough to keep him and his family living comfortably for quite some time."

"Are you telling me that the basketball girl is rich?" Connor asked incredulously, not afraid to show his disbelief.

"Not her, personally, but her family will be quite well off. Eiji will receive the payment within the week, but as of now she does not know that she has a rich uncle," Serac's eyes fell upon a black cat as it peeked its head into the building through the open door.

Ignoring the animal, Connor pressed for more, "What else?"

His gaze trailing after the cat's movements, Serac muttered, "The rest is of little consequence, to you."

"Of little consequence my ass!"

"Very well. You have made the Naba girl self conscious of her body by calling her 'Fully-developed girl'."

"That was just a joke, I-"

"And she is just a teenaged girl. You have hurt the kunoichi through your actions and inactions. You-"

Taking his hand off of the wall hold it up in front of him as if to shield himself from the unpleasant truths, Connor cut in, "Kaede? She's fine! She hit me already, so we've cleared up the mess!"

Serac shook his head, "You do not even believe that, so do not try and pass the lie by me. By your fawning over the Chinese girl, and her over you, you have successfully dealt a blow to Nagase's self image."

Shaking his head was all Connor could do to signify that he disagreed with that, because his tongue was caught in his throat. It was sounding like he had done as much damage as good. But Kaede seemed so sure of herself all of the time...True, he hadn't really been spending much time with her at all, but he wasn't just ignoring her...was he?

"No matter how sure of oneself one may be, to be used and brushed aside by another is a very belittling experience. Regardless of what you think or may have intended, that is how she has interpreted it all. It would be too much of a joke for you to believe she should take it otherwise. Lest it not be mentioned, as you want to know so bad what you have done, know that you have also damaged the faith that some of them had in men. The lie concerning the baby and your willingness to give up custody as you did will reflect rather poorly upon you, and it will affect several people other than yourself. Would you like me to keep going?" Serac finally paused long enough to breathe, but Connor wasn't even sure if he needed to.

Still shaking his head to tell Serac he had heard enough, Connor took a few steps to look out to the garden, not all that surprised to find Sayo sneaking a listen. He pretended not to have noticed her so she wouldn't get embarrassed and run away. ...Fly away. He remembered a time when he didn't care what any of them thought about him, and he wished he still felt that way. Now, whether he liked it or not...

"So you care about these people, it is understood. That does not mean that you should cling to them so. It is rather pitiful."

He was fuming on the outside, but he was embarrassed and sad on the inside. Not quite sure what to do with himself, Connor simply continued to stand there, staring daggers at the man before him. When it became apparent that Serac was going to wait for him to say something, he dislodged his tongue from his throat and spoke, "It's pitiful that you can't grasp that sometimes people need each other. I cling because I need something to hold on to!"

"No, you cling because you need people to hold on to you. Being needed by others validates you," Serac muttered.

"I don't need validation! These people are a part of my life, now! They're a part of who I am."

"And yet, only minutes ago, you claimed you would be leaving."

A few seconds of silent one-sided tension passed by before Serac continued to speak, "You cling to these relationships in your mind, you claim that they are a part of who you are. These...people, these relationships, the feeling of being wanted, none of them, none of that amounts to you being any more than you are. Take this can, for example," Serac snapped his fingers, and a dirty old soda can flickered into his free hand.

"I can cling to this piece of garbage until the end of time. I can claim that because I cling to it and it is important to me, that it is a part of me. That will never change the fact that it is simply a piece of garbage, a separate thing apart from me. I can drop it whenever I so choose," He released the can, which evaporated before it hit the ground, "You would do well to drop your own pathetic garbage, Connor."

The man in black took a few slow steps towards the Wanderer, pointing a finger at his chest, just close enough to him that he could feel the tip begin to numb, "I will never...ever...be like you. I would rather hold on to anything than end up with nothing, like you. If that makes me pathetic, fine. I'd rather be pathetic with everyone else in the world, than be detached and alone. You want me to drop my garbage? Fine. I'm dropping you," He turned around and made for the exit.

"Connor," Serac mumbled just loud enough for his company to hear.

"Rot in hell," The man replied, not stopping.

"As we agreed, I am to tell you now where to find the girl's soul."

And he stopped.

-

"I can't believe he would do that..." The scarlet-haired boy spoke, hardly breaking a whisper. Negi was in the headmaster's office, and he had just discovered Connor's abrupt leave. Not only that, but he had just found out that his ex-aid had signed off his own child to the custody of the headmaster.

"Negi-kun, it may be difficult to understand, but there were circumstances which we are not completely aware of. We have to try and be understanding and sympathetic to the situation," The headmaster, still sore from his tie with Evangeline, spoke slowly from behind his desk.

"I am sympathetic. I'm sympathetic to the little girl he left without a father! I can't believe he would do that...just...it's like he abandoned her..." The boy's eyes were misting over, and he brought up a sleeve to brush the water away before they became full-blown tears, "It's almost like..."

Konoemon shook his head, "Your father never abandoned you Negi-kun, don't even think that."

"Then...wh-where is he?" The damn broke, and the tears came flowing out. Unable to hide his weakness a second longer in front of the headmaster, Negi did what any ten-year-old would. He turned around and he bolted.

As he flung the ajar door shut behind him in his flight, Negi ran straight into someone, who caught him up in their arms. He didn't know who it was, and his blurry vision wouldn't allow him a clear look. He never bothered with it, though. Burying his face into the person's chest, he let out his disappointment and sadness in sobs, sinking to the ground as the person continued to hold him, one hand on the top of his head, the other wrapped around him.

"I-It's ok...Negi-sensei..." Nodoka whispered, laying her cheek beside her hand on the top of his head, trying to console the teacher she was head over heels for.

In between his crying Negi managed to speak, even though it was muffled into his student's clothes, "I'll b-be the dad f...for her...I'll be th-the dad he couldn't be..."

Nodoka, who had been eavesdropping, didn't know if Negi was talking about Connor, or his own father. Nothing was going to persuade her to ask, however, so she continued to hold him close in silence.

"I just...I can't d-do all of this alone...I wish he was here..."

"Negi-sensei, you're not alone. You can count on all of us, we'll always be there to help you, no matter what..." Easing Negi back just enough that she could look into his eyes, Nodoka concluded, "I'll always be there for you."

In that teary moment, Negi let impulse take over, and he found himself pushing forward and pressing his lips against Nodoka's. She gasped a little, but was quick to return the kiss and just soak the moment in. This wasn't like the Yue-induced accident after the lip-scramble game, this was the real thing. She hadn't even been the one to initiate it, Negi had chosen to kiss her of his own free will. That thought alone made her head go fuzzy, her lips burning from the thrilling touch of his before they went numb when he stopped.

Negi waited the few seconds it took Nodoka to flutter her eyes open before he stated, "I'm...sorry about what you saw with Chachamaru-san. I don't...know exactly what happened, she just...she's confused because of the upgrades Hakase's been giving, and I-" He stopped talking when Nodoka pressed a finger against his lips, leaning in for a second kiss. All thoughts of Connor and his father left his mind.

-

"Well I'll be a son of a bitch..." Connor muttered, leaving the building and moving to sit beside Asakura's grave. Sayo, still believing her presence was undetected, continued to watch in what she thought was secret.

Serac followed slowly after his acquaintance, arms folded as he stood on the opposite side of the grave, "A rather interesting turn of events, you can agree."

"But why would...that doesn't make any sense. She was going to ruin the world! I can't believe that..."

"Creation and destruction go hand in hand. To create a new world, the old one must inevitably disappear. You may not have approved of the Mother's methods, but that does not mean everyone else did not. Some can understand and appreciate that nothing worth having comes easily, and sometimes sacrifices must be made for the greater objective good," Serac watched as the black cat followed them from the clock tower out into the tsuwabuki garden.

"Ha, funny. It almost sounds like you're trying to help me out. Almost," Connor couldn't help but grin at the ridiculous thought.

"No, I am simply telling you what I am meant to. Now that you know where to find the soul, you have only to retrieve it. You will find him to be willing enough to part with it, should you provide him with ample reason..." Serac let the last word trail off, as if to tell Connor that words might not be the way to go. He raised his hand, poised to snap his fingers and leave.

"Serac, wait. There's something I want to say to you..."

"That you love me like cancer, and hate me like a father. I already know," He snapped his fingers, vanishing with a flicker.

Sayo hurried down to Connor's side, and he gave her a half-hearted smile as a welcome, "Connor-sensei, you know how to get her back, now?" The ghost asked, hope practically bursting from her ethereal pores.

With a slight nod, the man in black replied, "Yes, Casper, yes I do."

"Are you going to be alright, though? The Thousand Master sounds scary...do you know him?"

"Not personally, but since he's holding the souls for the Mother, I will soon enough. I hate Serac with everything I am, but he's damn good when you need to find something out. Since I know where to look, I should be back in two weeks, tops," He climbed to his feet, patting Sayo on the shoulder as he passed her by, "Be good while I'm gone."

_-----Author's other note: Wow, that was a pretty good chapter, I think. Short, but good._

_Thanks to my faithful reviewers, whom I have not been very thankful to, of late. Master Masa Random, Ambrant Arandel, Raedric, and Fullmetalfan, I freaking love you guys. Maybe I'm only saying this because it's three in the morning, I'm high on Hawaiian Punch, and I can't think straight, but seriously. You guys kick ass. All four of you are good writers, too, which blows me away. That I know of, I've got four great writers who take the time to read my messed up drivel, and I thank you for it. Writing this is much more productive than the other things I would do with my spare time (Such as homework, which shall usually be put off to the last possible moment). You know what? I didn't have a note for this chapter, so it was just going to be the disclaimer, before I decided to tell everyone that you guys rock. The deed is done, and I have another pointlessly long author's note._

_While I'm at it, thank you Eternal-Longing for leaving a review at the end of 'The Dreamer', and for choosing my story as your first Negima! Fic. Thanks for your review in here, too._

_Tsutomu Teruko, I wouldn't have even known you read this if not for something you said in Masa's forum. Don't even know you at all, but you know what? You rock for reading, thank you._

_Dark Knight Gafgar, thank you for the favorite. If you get through this story without hating Serac, awesome. If not, you'll be like everyone else, probably._

_That'll do, that'll do. Thanks for reading...-----_


	11. It's Only Speculation

_-----Author's note: Far too long have I been silent! The story will now continue, no more ridiculous chapter droughts! Also, there are some big time spoilers for the Chao arc in here, so if you don't want that, don't read. You have been warned._

_I do not own Negima!, but any other characters and ideas are my own. Enjoy...-----_

"But how is...how is that possible? We were only gone-"

"A week, Negi. I know it's difficult to swallow, but-"

"Why didn't you come get us? Why didn't you come get me? I wanted to...I needed to be there!"

"By the time we figured out where you were, it was already over, and there was no way we could have gotten you out, anyway. ...It's done."

Negi stood up in anger, slamming a white-knuckled fist onto the table, "Then undo it! I will not accept this! I can't!"

Takamichi rose to his feet, his fist snapping the table in half when it came down. He wasn't angry at Negi, not at all. Sending the message that he was just as frustrated as the boy was his goal. The hanging light above the two swayed back and forth under the tension in the dark room, "You surely can't think that this is how I wanted everything to turn out. What Chao did...what she tried to do...It was wrong."

"She just wanted to...It was the only way she thought she could make the world a better place! I don't know what happened to her to make her think that way, but she thought she was doing the right thing!"

Takamichi stuck a cigarette in-between his lips, flipping his lighter open to light it up, "Negi, the ends don't justify the means. Just because her heart was in the right place doesn't give her the right to do as she pleases. You should understand that as well as anyone else."

Frowning, the boy pressed, "What's that supposed to mean?"

Regretting the destruction of the table that had once separated them, Takamichi took a couple of steps off to the side, his free hand in his pocket as his other one removed his freshly lit cigarette from his mouth. Negi watched as a puff of smoke escaped the man's mouth as he began to speak, "Two weeks ago we all took part in something...something that I can't really define. The things that we were confronted with, the decisions we made, all of it. When the Mother was poised to change the world, with pure intentions driving her, we didn't allow it. Though neither you or I would have been around to enjoy it, what she offered was a utopia. We would not allow her to change the world, so why should we have let Chao?"

"The Mother was going to kill everyone! You can't even compare the two!" The young teacher could hardly believe that Takamichi was trying to draw parallels between his student and a demon that had been bent on nearly eliminating humankind, "Chao just wanted to help people..."

"Different people help in different ways. My way...was to preserve our world. Had I faltered, she may have beaten me. I wonder if we hadn't gone through what we did, would I have given her the opening she needed?" After taking another drag, the older man gave a half-hearted shrug, "Probably. I guess it's not important."

Hearing Takamichi use the words 'not important' in the conversation they were having stung. Negi was afraid for his student who, apparently, he was a progenitor of. His ties with his students had always been strong, but if he was really...If she was his descendant...

"Takamichi...I'm sorry about...I know that you didn't ask for any of this. Chao is family, though, so I need to know that she's alright. I want to see her."

The man looked at the boy, and the boy back at the man. Takamichi couldn't help but wonder if he was looking at an adult trapped in a boy's body, sometimes. It was with a heavy heart that he shook his head 'no', "I'm sorry."

"Takamichi, please," Negi asked quietly, staring into his friend's eyes, searching for some sign that he might break.

"The world is an unforgiving place, Negi. Every action has consequences, and we can't avoid that. Even Chao couldn't."

"When can I see her, then?"

Takamichi's cigarette seemed to dim, the red glow fading at these words, much like the owner's spirits, "...Never."

"N-Never? What?" The young teacher stepped around the collapsed table to get in front of his friend, who's somber expression didn't tell him it had been a poor joke.

"That's all. Just...never," The older one averted his eyes.

"She's a member of my family at some point down the line, so you're kidding yourself if you don't think I'll ever see her again! You can't keep me from her, so wh...What's that look for?" The scarlet-haired boy managed to maintain himself enough to see the look of defeat in Takamichi's eyes, which were now back on him.

"We've been having Misora keep an eye on Chao since her questionable arrival two years ago. With no information on her at all, it was a rather important task to make sure we monitored her. After all, she is a genius. As such, the blood tests we had done before had all been tampered with, and we never got solid reads. She's definitely slick. After we incarcerated her, we performed some more simple tests, and now know that you are, indeed, of the same blood."

"That means you know who the mother is, too, right? Who I..." He wanted to say 'marry', because he didn't want it to be a fling, but at the same time he was only ten, so he was confused and embarrassed as all hell.

"We do."

"Well, who is it?!" Negi was practically ready to fall to his knees and beg for the information.

Taking a drag before replying, the man shook his head, "Negi, you can't ever see Chao again because we're not going to allow you to procreate with the female progenitor."

Negi's eyes widened, his mouth opening just a little as he stared at the man in white before him. Their eyes met, one pair shocked and distressed, the other sad and tired. The boy tried to speak, but couldn't quite form the words.

"One simple incision in her family tree, and Chao will never be born," The man continued, even if hesitantly, "It will be like she never existed at all."

"But she did!" Negi exclaimed, his hands once again clenched into fists, "She did exist! You can't take that away, you can't! It's like murder, you can't do that! She has a life, sh-she has friends, and dreams!"

"Her dreams are what make her dangerous, Negi. She's too smart for her own good, and this is what has been decided."

"Why don't you just erase her memory?" Negi suggested, desperately searching for a more desirable alternative, "Surely that's better for everyone!"

"The council of mages has already made their decision, and they will not change it. Come on, don't you think I tried? I don't want this, either, but there's nothing we can do about it. Now that the council knows who the progenitors are, there's no way you will ever be able to get together. Since you don't even know, any little nudge away from her by the council, and Chao's gone."

"It can't be...You've got to tell me! I..." Negi grabbed Takamichi by the arm, though he was trembling and his grip was weak and loose.

"And what would you do with the knowledge? Run away with her and hide for the rest of your lives? That in itself would be an alteration in history, and there's no guarantee that she'd be born, like that. No, you're better off not knowing. Besides...once you're clear of the female progenitor, Chao will have never been born. That means she will have never come back in time, which means..."

"I won't remember her..."

"None of us will."

Silence fell over the two, but whether it was a mutual silence or a one-sided one was still in question. Takamichi had done more than enough talking, and would have been more than happy for it to be over. Negi, on the other hand, was full of questions and worries, the like that words were near impossible he was so overwhelmed by them. He didn't want to do it, but there was just a little more he had to say before he could stop talking.

"Another reason we believed it to be important to watch her was that a certain spell was being tested those two years ago. Do you know what spell that was?" Takamichi knew the boy would know. Hell, everyone in the magic world had heard about it.

"You can't be telling me that Chao is somehow related to that? To him?" Negi asked, his voice still louder than normal, so was his frustration with the entire situation.

"Would it be so farfetched? But, no, I don't think Chao is directly related to him. I think, rather, that someone else is related to Chao."

"...What are you getting at?"

"Negi, do you believe in fate?" Takamichi asked, his cigarette finally dying out on him. He just went ahead and dropped the thing on the floor, a new one already lit up before it had even stopped rolling from the impact with the ground.

"I don't see what that has to do with anything," The boy replied honestly.

"Maybe...it doesn't. Or maybe it has to do with everything, I'm not sure, myself. This is just speculation on my part, Negi, but I think that there's something deeper going on here than any of us know. I think that someone is trying pretty damn hard to wipe Chao off the map for good."

"Tell me," The boy urged, releasing his friend's arm.

Nodding once before speaking, the man started slowly and gradually picked up speed, "It's just too much of a coincidence that the interest in other worlds and making contact with them happened at the same time as Chao's appearance in our time. Also, though it's attracted much less attention than the world hopping issue, the mage's council underwent a small series of power changes two years ago, introducing a few new faces. They're all accomplished wizards, but shortly after the change there was a spike in the funding offered to those studying alternate universes and parallel dimensions."

"For all of the interest that was being put into this research by the new members of the council, doesn't it seem odd that they would drop it all and forbid it just as soon as success starts to show? They managed to pull a living, breathing, functional human being from another world into our own! Then they stop altogether, bury the projects, shred the documents, and seal their lips on the matter. Negi, we're of the mind that Connor was pulled through the portal as the main object and that the Mother was a rather unintended parasite that tagged along, right?" He waited for the boy to agree, which he quickly did with a nod, "But what if we have it backwards? What if the Mother was the intended target, and Connor just got dragged along by accident?"

A few seconds of quiet passed by, Negi mulling over what Takamichi had said. Then he caught what might have been a fatal flaw, "But you're assuming that there was a target, at all. That would be impossible, because we have no information whatsoever about where Connor comes from. We couldn't know anything about what was out there, so how could we intend to take one thing, and not another? If anything at all?"

"That's the interesting point," Takamichi moved by Negi, returning to his seat. As he continued, Negi moved back to his own chair, "How would the council have been able to reach out across worlds and consciously grab something to take without first knowing it was there? They wouldn't. That means that someone, or something, informed them of the Mother and what she was capable of."

"Who? Who could possibly know something like that?"

"Hm..." Was the meager response the boy got from Takamichi as another cloud of cigarette smoke escaped into the room.

"But why would the council want to unleash a demon like that on us? They protect people, they wouldn't intentionally endanger us all like that!" Negi pointed out, his elbows on his knees as he leaned forward, his brow furrowed in thought and confusion.

"There's another point of interest. Don't you find it odd that though the portal was opened up two years ago, that it took the Mother up until just recently to make any sort of move? Just prior to the festival and Chao's plan? I think that the council contained and studied her until they saw fit to use her. I think that they knew the effects she would have on us in Mahora and, consequently, Chao and her plan, beforehand. Maybe without this intervention on their part, Chao would have succeeded. Who knows how different things might be had we never had to deal with the Mother, or had Connor never shown up?"

"Can we assume that they could know these kinds of things based solely on the fact that some of them may have come from the future, like Chao? It's all feasible, but...you're doing a lot of guesswork, Takamichi. Who would want to do these things to make sure Chao's plan failed? And then to go so far as to want her to never be born..."

"I don't know why Chao wanted to change the world, Negi, but she might just have some ruthless enemies who have some lofty connections. ...I don't think this is over, yet," The man said so low it was almost a whisper. He plucked his cigarette from his mouth, looking the boy in the eyes, "Monsters never die..."

"You think that...?" Negi frowned, hoping that Takamichi was talking about something else. Anything else, would be better.

"Shizuna's aura is back. She's had the dream," Takamichi confided in Negi, who practically fell off his chair.

"When did this happen? I haven't seen her in a while! Are you sure that it's...she's dead! I saw her dead body with my own eyes! Connor killed her!" The boy stated, his arms fumbling around the edges of his seat as he steadied himself and stopped his fall.

"It came back during the week you were gone. Another student in the academy has had it, as well. Don't worry," He raised a hand at Negi's alarm, "It's not one of yours. All of this is tied together in some way, I'm just not sure I've got all of the pieces. If something should happen to me, you know as much as I do, now."

"Why would something happen to you? The dream...that's right. That means that we're all at risk, again. If it really is the same thing..."

"Go and speak with the headmaster. I believe he wanted to teach you something that you might find very useful in the future. God knows we're going to need all the preparation we can muster."

"Takamichi," Negi muttered, rising to his feet, "It's been two weeks since she died. Why would it come back now?"

"I wish I knew, Negi. I wish I knew..." The mentally weary man sighed as Negi left, taking a deep breath of smoke from his almost finished cigarette as the hanging light above him began to flicker. The temperature plummeted, and he could feel the goose bumps rising all over his skin. The light above him died, and his cigarette went out a second after.

"How very astute of you," An emotionless voice came from a few feet in front of him, though he couldn't see the person in the pitch black.

"I appreciate what you told me before I confronted Chao, but you gave yourself and the council away from minute one," Takamichi held back the quiver in his voice, intent on hiding any and all anxiety while in the presence of the Wanderer.

"Did I," Serac stated more than asked, now several feet away to Takamichi's right.

"Yes. I don't understand why you're going through all of the trouble of this just for Chao, though..."

"I care not for the girl," The voice came now from his left, "But for the continuation of things. This is how they continue, and thus I am content."

"But to use the council, put the world in danger, manipulate countless people...For what?"

"For the sake of the game," Serac replied quietly, back on the right, "Puppets are made to be manipulated for the entertainment of their master and those who watch. You would do well to understand that everything you do, you do because your strings are being pulled."

"Is the Mother really coming back?" Takamichi forced himself to ask, though he felt he wouldn't get a very good answer.

"Time will tell what I will not," Takamichi jumped when the voice came from below him, his chair clattering noisily onto its side.

After looking around in the darkness for a few seconds, he managed to ask another question, "Is Connor alright? It's been over a week since he left."

This time, the voice came from over his shoulder, so close that they were almost touching, "He does as instructed, as he knows he should. I have brought another to fill his space, however, so you need not concern yourself with such matters."

"A-Another? What do you..." The light flicked back on as the door to the room opened up, Seruhiko looking in to see what was going on.

"You ok in here, man?"

Takamichi, covered in a cold sweat, nodded a little, exhaling deeply, "It's been a long day."

_-----Author's other note: I'll be damned that was tough. It didn't come out the way I originally intended it to, but it had been far too long since I updated, and this is just what came out. Here's hoping I still have more than three readers after not updating for over a month. And that I didn't chase those three readers away with this really thought intensive/confusing as hell chapter. Oh, and as tomorrow morning it will be Valentine's, happy Valentine's day!_

_Thanks for reading...-----_


	12. A Moment Of Your Time, Please

_-----Author's note: This should probably have been done last chapter, but I was sloppy. Here are the people who were with Negi, and who were part of his week-long stay in Eva's resort, as part of Chao's plan:_

_1. Asuna, 2. Nodoka, 3. Yue, 4. Kaede, 5. Ku Fei, 6. Chisame, 7. Haruna, 8. Ayaka._

_You'll notice that the only differences are Konoka and Setsuna aren't present, and Ayaka is. Reason being the first two mentioned girls are in Kyoto, and Ayaka is now Negi's partner (Remember the pactio from the Dreamer?). Evangeline was there as well, but she's still not talking after The Dreamer. Repercussions, people, repercussions. If you don't get it right now, I'll get around to explaining it sooner or later in the actual story, so no worries._

_I do not own Negima!, but any other characters and ideas are my own. Enjoy...-----_

"He...what?"

"Quit! Right before the festival, too..."

Sakurako let out a depressed sigh, resting her elbows on her desk so she could prop her chin in her hands. Misa and Madoka were on either side of her as they prepared to begin yet another day of school, "We didn't even find out until after the festival! Without Asakura around, it's harder to keep up with the gossip..."

"It sucks that she transferred, doesn't it? I kind of always thought we'd all be friends forever," Madoka admitted with a little grin, "You know...doesn't it just feel like that's how it should be?"

Misa nodded, then looked to see how Ku Fei was handling the news of Connor's permanent leave. It wasn't all that long ago that she and her two best friends had been hiding behind some bushes, watching her try and confess to the guy at the World Tree plaza. She never did figure out how that had worked out, actually...Oh, right, back to the Chinese girl! Having just figured out that she might not ever see Connor again, Misa assumed that Ku Fei would be rather upset. Imagine her shock when the girl she was watching simply smiled and shrugged, mumbling a good-riddance.

"Are you really that mad at him about the whole baby thing?" Sakurako couldn't help but ask, "I mean, can you blame whoever she was for hopping into bed with him?"

"I blame him for lying," Ku Fei stated, keeping to herself the fact that she was upset he had been sleeping with someone prior to coming to Mahora. He was a man, after all, so what did she expect?

"When he got here," Sakurako broke into Ku Fei's thoughts, "We all agreed that he wasn't an adult, yet. It's kind of weird to find out that he was really more adult than we thought, huh?"

Misa laughed a little, "We all said he wasn't so we could date him! He looked kind of stupid wearing his headband thing with a brown suit, but other than that, God damn!"

"He not care what you think," Ku Fei stated, remembering all too well how often the teacher would insist he didn't do just that: Care. It was really too bad how things had turned out, because he had started to warm up to them all.

"He definitely was full of himself, wasn't he?" Madoka agreed.

"I wish I had gotten full of himself," Haruna interrupted, coming up from behind the four.

The aforementioned four whipped around to stare at her in surprise, and a little bit of discomfort. The manga artist was perverted to the degree that her joke may have held truth to it, so all they managed to do was gawk at her with wide open mouths.

"Come on, you opened the door, I just walked through it," She stated casually, "It's sad that he's gone, because he was a great model for my work!"

"When did he ever model for you?" Misa ventured.

"Hm? Oh, he doesn't know he modeled for me."

"How does he not know?" The blonde cheerleader wondered aloud.

"...I definitely didn't follow him around and take pictures of him."

"..."

"...Definitely not."

-

Nodoka, infant in tow, marched her way into the classroom and set herself down in her chair. She was still rather flustered about how the other night had gone. It was in Eva's resort (Which they had borrowed without consent) where she had shared a room with a rather insistent Negi. Since he had promised to be the best 'dad' for the baby that he could, he had been doing all in his power to be there for Nodoka and the girl. They had stayed up and talked for a long time, and even...sort of...picked out a name for the girl; Matsuro. Nodoka thought it fitting, and Negi didn't ever need to know why she did.

But was that wrong? To be keeping secrets from the boy she loved, when he was being so good about everything? He was really upset at Connor, thinking the man had abandoned his own child and just up and left. Well, he did just up and leave, but he definitely didn't abandon anyone. ...Anyone under the age of one, at any rate. The quiet girl looked over to find Ku Fei discussing the teacher with the cheerleaders and Haruna, wondering how she was feeling, having just found out that Connor had left Mahora permanently.

She sighed, looking down at the little girl in her arms. It had been four days since she had gotten her. Four for her, though one of the days wound up being a week long, thanks to a little trick by Chao. However the time panned out, she had grown quite accustomed to Matsuro, already. Not only was she well behaved, quiet, and damned near the cutest little thing (As babies often tend to be), but the little girl had brought her closer to Negi, as well. Closing her eyes as she leaned back in her chair, she remembered the previous night in the resort...

_Sitting on the edge of her huge rounded bed, Nodoka watched in girlish glee as Negi held the baby in his arms in a black leather chair a few yards ahead. She could see the love in his eyes, and it gave her goose bumps. Maybe it was the love that most people have for babies; they smile and hold them, sing to them and play with them. Or maybe it was something more than that? She liked to think that it was. In her head (Though she'd never say it out loud. ...Well, just yet, anyway) she believed that Negi loved the baby because it was a sort of symbol._

_To Nodoka, the baby was the best symbol ever, save for one other. Since she couldn't quite see Negi giving her a ring anytime soon (Not that it stopped her from fantasizing), this was a great replacement symbol. The little girl, to Nodoka, symbolized commitment. The two were committed to caring for the child together. It was almost like they were a..._

"_Nodoka-san? Are you alright?" Negi asked lightly, still swaying back and forth just slightly._

_The addressed girl quickly snapped back to attention, realizing that Negi was now looking at her, not the infant. Blushing, as she was quite prone to, Nodoka quickly replied, "O-Of course!"_

_Stopping himself from pointing out that she had been staring at him to spare her the embarrassment and to prevent a string of stammering, Negi simply nodded and returned his attention to the baby. That's when it struck him, "With everything that's been going on, I must have forgotten her name!" Negi took his turn to blush, looking back up at the librarian, "You're not mad, are you?"_

_Rather than confiding that she could never be mad at him, Nodoka shook her head. She had been kicking around name ideas for the girl for awhile, now, but couldn't seem to pick one that she really liked. None of them really seemed to fit, like she imagined they should._

"_Ah, I'm glad," Negi sighed, "Nodoka-san, do you...do you think that it was for the best?"_

"_That what was for the best?"_

"_...That Connor left? That she's with us, now?"_

_Nodoka smiled weakly, "I think it was fate for her to be with us, Negi-sensei," She replied truthfully._

_Negi returned her smile, apparently pleased with her response. A few seconds passed before his smile went kind of awkward, "I still can't remember her name!" He exclaimed, closing his eyes tight._

"_It's Matsuro," Nodoka blurted out, clapping her hands together and smiling widely. She was blessed with luck that Negi should think he had forgotten the girl's name. It made it all the easier to keep up the charade that Connor wasn't the actual father. Hiding the fact that she didn't know the baby's real name was important, and she hoped she was believable._

"_Matsuro? Y-yeah, of course that's it! I feel dumb for forgetting," Negi laughed. He needed Nodoka to think he actually remembered, now, or he was in deep trouble. He seriously didn't want to upset her by forgetting something as important as the baby's name. They were supposed to be taking care of it together, and he couldn't even remember a name! Matsuro didn't sound familiar at all! He hoped he was believable._

_And, so, both sat there smiling awkwardly at the other, both hoping that the other believed what they said. Negi eventually spoke, "Matsuro...means 'fate'. It's kind of pretty, and it goes well with what you said. I think she was meant to be with us, too," He admitted sheepishly._

_Nodoka would have spoken, but there weren't any defibrillators around to her knowledge, and should her heart give out, she'd be in trouble. That being the case, she simply blushed her damned best and sat there, looking cute._

_Negi rose to his feet, crossing the bage room to the bed. He slowly leaned over, at which point Nodoka started to tremble. She closed her eyes and puckered her lips, leaning forward just a little. Instead of receiving a kiss, she felt something be placed beside her. Opening one of her eyes, she found Matsuro asleep by her side._

"_Do you have to go to the bathroom?" Negi asked, noticing the odd expression on Nodoka's face. She was red and her mouth looked like it was worked up in deep concentration. Not to mention the slight trembling. Of the possible _causes he guessed a weak seizure, sudden allergy attack, or a serious case of holding it in.

'_Oh, crap! What's wrong with me thinking like that?' Nodoka squeaked to herself, 'I'm such a horn dog! Bad! Bad Nodoka!' "N-No, I'm fine! Really!"_

_The baby started to cry at this point, much to the confusion of both. She had been fine just a second ago... "Hey, it's alright," Negi whispered softly, reaching back down to pick her up. Nodoka had done much the same, and their hands touched, at which point both quickly pulled back, apologizing. Once he was sure that the path was safe and touching-student free, the young teacher reached back down._

_As soon as he was touching her, Matsuro stopped crying. Now back in the boy's arms, she was perfectly content to look up at him with her little eyes, tiny fists balled up at her chest, 'It's almost like Nodoka-san,' Negi grinned at the thought, picturing Nodoka holding her clenched fists up to her chin when she was nervous. After a few seconds of rocking back and forth, he tried to put the girl back down, only to have her cry again as soon as his touch was gone._

"_It's ok, I'll try," Nodoka offered, picking the girl up. To her dismay, Matsuro did not slow her crying, despite the librarian's most motherly of efforts. It was weird, this had never happened before!_

"_Sorry, Nodoka-san, I'll be right back! You might not, but I do need to use the restroom!" And with those words, the boy hurried off to relieve himself._

_As the moments passed by and Matsuro refused to relent her wailing, Nodoka couldn't help but mumble, "I know, I want him to hold me, too. Lucky..."_

_As soon as Negi came back, he stepped briskly up to Nodoka and reached for the baby, which the librarian was all too willing to relinquish. Again, as soon as he touched the girl, she stopped crying. To see if this was really the case, he pulled his hand back. Crying. Poked her with one of his fingers. Happy again. Retracted his finger. More crying. Put his hand on her stomach. Perfectly fine. Hand taken back. Crying resumes._

"_That is the weirdest thing!" Negi admitted, scooping the offered child up, now completely silent._

"_I-It certainly is..." Nodoka replied meekly, a little disheartened that she had been unable to console the crying child, herself._

"_I guess I'll be staying in here tonight, then," Negi stated simply, moving for his previous chair._

"_Huh? Wh-What?"_

"_Well if she wants me, I definitely can't leave her to cry, and keep you up, can I? It wouldn't be right of me to take her away from her mom, either!"_

"_M-Mom?" She wasn't sure how much she liked that. Sure, one day she wanted to be a mom, but was that day this day? And every day after? She wasn't sure if she was ready for that kind of responsibility, whether it was fate or not. It was scary to think that someone was dependant upon her, that needed her to take care of them every day. She had thought of all of this before now, but hearing Negi call her 'mom' brought the question slamming back down on her conscience; Was she ready for this?_

_In a matter of minutes Nodoka found herself lying under the covers of the bed, Matsuro right beside her, and Negi on the opposite side of Matsuro, still making sure to touch the child to keep her silent. They were both quiet, and the librarian was pretty sure the people throughout the resort could hear her heart pounding in her chest. This would mean that Negi could definitely hear, which made her embarrassed and nervous as hell. The harder she tried to quiet it, the louder it seemed to get, which only made her more embarrassed. It was a vicious cycle she was trapped in, and one she didn't appear likely to escape._

_Several minutes passed before Negi said anything, and what he said surprised her, "Nodoka-san..."_

"_Y-Yes?" She stammered._

"_I'm...I'm scared."_

_She turned her surprised expression to look at Negi, who was only about two feet away from her. The boy returned her gaze, not afraid to hide the worry in his eyes. The two looked at each other for a few seconds until Nodoka realized he was waiting for her to say something back, "Of what?" She whispered, not capable of getting much more out._

"_Of all of it. I'm scared for Chao-san, I'm scared about tomorrow, I'm scared that something bad might happen to someone I care about. ...I'm scared of this...Of us and where we might be going. I'm scared most of all that I might not be able to hold it all together for everyone. What if I...let you down?" He stopped talking, still looking at Nodoka as though she might have some sort of answer for his myriad of troubles._

_She returned his gaze, unblinking and unsure of what to say. If he needed some sort of encouragement, he was coming to the wrong place. She was scared out of her mind about her future with the baby. It had all happened so fast, she felt as though she hadn't really had much of a choice in the matter. If it had happened slower, and she had the time to really think about it, would she have done anything differently? That was when she realized something._

"_Negi-sensei...We're all scared. None of us know how things are going to turn out, but...but we still try our best, and do what we think is right. As long as we do that...as long as you do that, you'll never let anyone down. You could never let me down, anyway, Negi-sensei," She paused for a second, and added the second part as a sort of afterthought, "A-And as far as we g-go, if it's right, it'll work. We just have to try."_

_Not only did she feel proud of herself for her saying all of that with only minimal stuttering, but she felt that maybe she had said something right, because Negi gave her a small smile and rolled back over onto his back to look up at the ceiling through the darkness. Then something happened that brought Nodoka to the completion of her previous realization._

_Negi reached over a little with his hand that had been on Matsuro to take a hold of Nodoka's hand. The baby didn't cry, as he half-expected her to, but was fast asleep, "I'm...not as scared, anymore. I think that you're right; It'll work if it's supposed to, if it's right. It feels right. And as far as Chao goes...I'll do my best, like you said. I have something else to fight for, now, I think."_

"_Wh-Wh-What?" Nodoka knew she must look like some kind of tomato, or an apple, or something._

"_A new family," Negi whispered, squeezing her hand a little._

_She knew, then, that she was ready to do this. She'd be the mom for Matsuro not because of anything Serac said, but because it was right. This moment told her all she needed to know about what she felt. She didn't need any other proof or incentive. She would love this baby for the rest of her life, and knew that Negi would, too. A baby really does change everything, after all._

They held hands all night, and Nodoka knew this because she hadn't been able to fall asleep even for a second. A part of her wondered just what exactly Matsuro's problem had been, then. Negi hadn't been touching her while they held hands, yet the baby didn't cry. She had hardly seen Negi since they had left the resort, but still no crying. It was funny.

It was at this point that Yuna and her steed, Akira, came bounding into the room. The basketball girl was riding Akira piggyback, waving a cowboy hat around above her head, cheering loudly and laughing the whole while, proclaiming her riches to the class. Akira was grinning, finding her friend's display humorous, even though she was a part of it.

"Are you going to do that every morning, now?" Madoka asked through a smile, "We get it, you're loaded."

Sakurako flew across the room, jumping up on top of Akira behind Yuna, laughing, "Me too, me too!"

"Hey, wait, get off!" Yuna protested as Akira's legs started to wobble under the newly added weight. A second later, the three girls were sprawled out on the floor.

"Sakurako, you're too heavy..." Akira groaned from beneath the cheerleader. Yuna rolled off, still laughing.

"Hey! Don't call me fat! That's mean," The blonde hopped up, crossing her arms in indignation.

And then, someone came strolling through the door that rather surprised everyone. It was none other than Evangeline A.K. McDowell. They all gawked at her as she made her way to her desk, and sat down without a word. None of them had even seen the diminutive junior high student in over two weeks! Evangeline had spells of poor attendance, but this one had lasted a while! What made it even weirder was that she came unattended, Chachamaru nowhere to be found.

Once the original shock wore off, most everyone resumed what they had been doing.

And so, one by one (Or often group by group), the girls of 3-A filled up the classroom as the time for the class to begin drew ever closer. Among these people who came in groups was Ayaka Yukihiro and Asuna Kagurazaka. Much to the surprise of all, they came to class together, and appeared rather amiable.

"Hey, hey, what's up with this lovefest?" Sakurako demanded of the two, who looked back at her incredulously.

"Lovefest?" Ayaka repeated, "I can assure you I have no idea what you're talking about."

"Yeah. What are you, high?" Asuna, too, had a retort quick to answer.

"We know all about your little week long trip out of town with Negi-sensei," Sakurako continued. Asuna and Ayaka both caught the nod meaning 'Just go with it' from Kaede, and knew to act as though they understood, "So what I want to know is, did something happen while you two were there?"

Haruna nodded sagely, "Indeed, something DID happen. I was there, after all..."

"WHAT IS WRONG WITH YOU PEOPLE!?" Asuna demanded, throwing her fists into the air.

"If ever I should so feel the need to resort to women, I can assure you it would not be with one who drags her knuckles," Asuna let the comment slide, as she would rather be insulted than have people think she was a lesbian.

"Then why so buddy buddy?" The blonde cheerleader pressed for an answer. If the two should stop fighting, she'd stop winning meal tickets in bets!

"We're not buddy buddy!" Asuna shouted, realizing that her arm was still linked jovially with Ayaka's, at which point she quickly pulled it away.

The truth was, since Negi's pactio with Ayaka and her ensuing involvement with the magic world, the blonde entrepreneur had stuck closely with Asuna to learn what was going on, and they had come to be better friends than they were. Don't misunderstand, they were good friends before, only now it was starting to show, much to their displeasure. They'd just been called on it, and were now kind of flurried about it.

"Oh yeah?" Chizuru asked coyly, attacking them from behind. She lifted their school shirts up to reveal each one had on a rather cute shirt featuring the face of the other on underneath. Asuna blinked a couple of times, looking down at the Ayaka face on her shirt. The blonde had her hand up to her mouth and was laughing, a common sight.

Ayaka looked down at her own Asuna shirt, a little perplexed, "Where's my Negi-sensei shirt?" She asked quietly.

"Your what?" Negi asked, entering the classroom.

"Nothing!" Ayaka jumped into her seat, Asuna quick to do the same.

The class, roster now full, rose to bow as class began. Well, it would have begun if Fuka hadn't raised her hand to ask a question. Negi was so used to her just jumping up and down (Or on top of desks) that he was almost pleased to call on her. Once addressed, the pink-haired girl stood up and asked, "Tell us all about your trip to the rep's island!"

Sakurako now cut in, "Yeah, why didn't you take us this time, Negi-kun?"

Misa: "I wanted to take my boyfriend..."

Makie: "I wanted to go swimming with you, Negi-kun!"

Yuna: "Ooh! That's a good idea! I should buy my own island!"

Fumika: "Can we go now, since we didn't get to?"

Zazie: "..."

Natsumi: "I'll bet Masa-kun would have liked it..."

Chizuru: "I keep forgetting you have a boyfriend, Natsumi!"

Natsumi: "Chizunee, that's mean..."

Ako: "I wonder if Nagi-san likes beaches?"

Zazie: "...?"

Madoka: "Ooh, I'll bet he'd like to go with you!"

Ako: "Y-You think? I did get a new swimsuit..."

Zazie, at this point, realizes that the class has gone straight to hell, so does what any normal person would: Juggling random objects from the classroom.

Fuka: "I liked the food! And the swimming! And staying up all night!"

Fumika: "You like the food here, swimming here, and you DO stay up all night whenever you can, anyway!"

Fuka: "But it's funner with Negi-sensei!"

Hakase: "'Funner' isn't a word."

Makie: "Everything's funner with Negi-sensei!"

Chisame: "If you're going to talk like stupid girls, at least do it right! Funner isn't a word!"

Misora: "Aren't they doing it right by talking wrong, then?"

Natsumi: "Funner isn't a word? Boy, do I feel stupid..."

Chizuru: "It's a word if you think it is, Natsumi..."

Natsumi, now being hugged by Chizuru: "Chizunee..."

Chamo, being juggled by Zazie: "How the hell did I wind up in here!?"

Half the class: "Did Negi-sensei's pet just talk?"

Zazie: "No."

Half the class: "Did Zazie just talk!?"

Kaede: "Huh."

Yue: "Yeah. Huh."

Chisame: "God, I hate all of you so much."

Yue: "That can't be healthy."

Chisame: "While I hate you less than others, you'd be smart to not talk to me so it stays that way."

Yue: "Fair enough."

Makie, who just produced a boom box which was now playing music: "You guys wanna see my new routine?"

Misa: "Yeah, do it!"

Satsuki: _'I could be working on a new lunch menu, right now...'_

Akira: "I still can't figure out what it is that's different when you talk."

Satsuki: _'My parents couldn't, either. Just try and ignore it.'_

Ayaka: "Everyone! That's enough! Negi-sensei's trying to teach!"

Asuna: "Yeah, cut it out!"

Ayaka: "Thank you, Asuna, but I don't need your input."

Asuna: "Oh, what? Your words are worth more than mine?"

Ayaka: "Well I am, after all, the class president."

Asuna: "Oh yeah? Prove it!"

Ayaka: "I will!"

Sakurako, having witnessed the start of a new battle between the pres and Asuna: "I put three on Ayaka!"

Madoka: "Guess they're really the same, after all."

Misa: "And here I thought they were the next Konoka and Setsuna."

Makie, while dancing her routine: "Four on Asuna!"

Madoka: "What are you talking about, Misa?"

Misa: "You know. Like, lovers, and stuff."

Zazie: "Ew."

Yuna: "Wow, Zazie's talkative today!"

Nodoka: "M-Maybe she's not feeling well?"

Haruna: "Ooh, maybe she's in love!"

Yue: "How did you get love out of two words? Should 'ew' even count as a word?"

Ako: "If you're not feeling well, you should go to the nurses. I can take you, if you want."

Zazie: "No."

Chachamaru: "My scanners show no signs of love."

Haruna: "You can read love signals!?"

Chachamaru: "I suppose that makes me akin to every other girl."

Yuna: "Wow, was that a joke? From Chachamaru?"

Zazie: "Yes."

Hakase: "The upgrades are coming along nicely. Soon, she'll be seamless. No one will ever be able to tell she's a robot at all once I give her skin an upgrade."

Fuka: "Chachamaru's a robot!?"

Fumika: "Scary!"

Chisame: "Oh my God, you're so stupid!"

Fumika: "Y-You're just cranky because you have a stick up your butt!"

Fuka: "No, she's cranky because she doesn't have a stick up her butt!"

Haruna: "Ooh, Chisame's weird..."

Chisame: "I AM NOT!"

Haruna: "We-e-e-ird..."

Akira: "No, Fuka's only nasty..."

Negi, though he initially tried to get them to quiet down, was quick to give up. Sure, it had only been maybe twenty seconds since Fuka's question, but the class was long gone and he knew it. Just to make sure he knew the class was done for, Asuna came sliding across his desk, Ayaka flying after her. The papers he had neatly stacked were sent flying up into the air, and he didn't bother trying to catch any of them. Sure they had been arranged in a specific order for his own convenience, but it didn't really matter. Fuka and Fumika were chasing each other around on top of the desks, and Zazie was now juggling what appeared to be flaming swords. Chisame was on her computer, doing something that no doubt had nothing to do with English. He noticed that the only attentive girls were Ku Fei and Evangeline, who were still in their seats and talking to no one.

Wait...Evangeline? When did she show up? He hadn't even seen her since before her tied battle with the headmaster! He had heard that she wasn't talking, but had been somewhat preoccupied with his entire jumble of a life to get to her. Chachamaru hadn't been particularly there for her, either. He hoped that she was alright.

As for Ku Fei, he knew why she wasn't taking part in any of class 3-A's rambunctiousness. Not only was she dealing with Connor's absence, but she was still waiting to hear the verdict for her best friend, Chao. Negi now knew what was going on, but did he really want to tell her? No, he didn't. The question was should he lie to her or not? Ku Fei had been there for him when she thought they would be fighting her, and she was a great friend of his. Not exactly the greatest student as the case often was, but she was important to him. He had to wonder was she important enough to him that he should lie to her to make her feel better, or tell her the truth which would hurt her? Being a well-thought gentleman definitely had its setbacks, sometimes.

Snapping him out of his pondering, Evangeline crossed the room and slapped an envelope on his desk, "I expect you to show. And dress up, I don't want you to make me look bad," She muttered nastily, moving for the door.

"E-Evangeline-san, class isn't over yet!" Negi called after her.

"Don't kid yourself. And it's master, boya, master," She replied casually, opening the door and walking right on out.

Before the sigh had escaped Negi's lips, Ku Fei was in front of him. Though he was surprised to find her upon turning around, he didn't need her to say anything to know what she wanted, "She's not coming back," He whispered. When it came time to speak, he found the truth was what came.

Ku Fei nodded a little, as though she had suspected this, "She ok, though?"

"Yeah, she's alright," Negi knew that since he still remembered her, Chao still existed somewhere, even if he didn't know where. As far as her being alright, though...well, when it came time to speak, he found that a lie was what came.

"I can't see her?"

"No, she's already gone."

"Ok...That good she alright. I glad. ...Negi-bouzu..."

Knowing what she was going to ask, he simply nodded, "You won't be missing anything."

Ku Fei thanked him, and took her leave.

Standing there amidst his bustling class, Negi just sat behind his desk and grabbed the envelope Evangeline had left. He ripped it open as Ayaka slammed into the blackboard behind him, then was flung over him, Asuna shortly behind. His eyes skimmed the note for a few seconds before he got a little nervous. As he continued the note, he became very nervous, "Oh...bollocks..."

-

"Well...I...will...be...damned."

Ku Fei jumped a little at the sound of the voice behind her, bringing her arm up to her face to wipe away her tears before looking to see who it was. She was currently out on the fence on the roof, taking a break to feel sorry for herself. Sometimes everyone needs a good cry, and losing her best friend just after losing her crush and finding out he was a dirty liar was enough of an incentive to make her want a cry.

The person she found behind her was someone she'd never seen before. Actually, from looking at him, she guessed he shouldn't even be there. Not only was he a boy in an all girl's school, but he wasn't wearing a uniform of any of the other nearby schools. Rather, the boy who matched her in size was wearing baggy cargo pants and a plain pine green t-shirt. Hanging from his neck was a necklace bearing a black cross. His green eyes glinted in the sunlight, flashing playfulness and fun.

"Such a pretty girl shouldn't be crying, now," The boy stated in a matter of fact tone, jumping up to grab the fence's railing. He flipped up and managed to land on his bottom, now sitting beside her.

"I not crying," Ku Fei replied, looking back out to the campus before her.

"Then that must be one nasty son of a bitch in your eye for them both to be leaking," The brunette boy replied with a grin, admiring the pretty view in front of him as much as the pretty view beside him.

"It is," She replied, unmoving.

"So what's wrong?"

"Why you care?"

"Can't stand to see a lady cry. Oh, sorry, I mean I can't stand to see a lady with a bit in her eye. Speaking of, you're not doing an awful lot of rubbing," The boy pointed out, still smiling to himself as though everything were right with the world.

"Why you here?" Ku Fei asked sourly, turning to look at him, "This is girl's school!"

"I got lost."

"In girl's school? So you come up to roof?"

The boy nodded, "I'll say now, there are worse places to get lost."

"What you even looking for?"

"A fight, actually. I'm here to lay down the law on this guy..." The boy admitted, punching a fist into his open hand.

That was something Ku Fei could grasp. A plain old fight, thank God, "Who you going fight?"

"It's this guy, you see. I hear he's kind of small, and young, but he's supposed to kick some serious ass in crunch time. So, stereo-typically enough of me, I'm here to prove I'm stronger."

Ku Fei's rubbed out the last of the tears in her eyes, glad to find a conversation simplistic enough that she could enjoy it, "That good! It good to fight to be stronger. ...But it sound like you want to fight Negi-bouzu..."

"Who? No, the guy I'm here to fight is called Ku Fei. Know him?" The boy asked innocently, raising an eyebrow at the girl in question.

"I Ku Fei!" The girl shouted, hopping down from the fence back onto the rooftop.

"Nu-uh," The boy countered, following suit.

"Yes huh!"

"Hell, this place has definitely got some damn good looking guys. I feel a homosexually charged match coming on!"

"I a girl! And I accept your challenge!" She squared into her fighting stance, and the boy did the same. She hoped the boy could put up a fight, because she needed something to help get her mind off of things.

"Alright, I'm not gay!" The boy announced proudly, having just won some sort of personal victory upon discovering Ku Fei was, indeed, a girl, and not a very attractive male, "For the time being, you may call me Koremitsu. Let's do this!" He jumped forward, throwing a fist at the girl in a somewhat slovenly fashion.

Before he was sure what had happened, his attack had been countered, he had received a palm to the stomach, and he was lying face down on the ground, "Ow," Koremitsu mumbled to the rooftop.

"What, that it? You all talk!" Ku Fei pouted, hanging her head in sorrow.

"Yep, guess you beat me," The boy replied pleasantly, hopping back to his feet. Ku Fei jumped back, surprised at his quick recovery, "Then it's settled! From this day forth, you shall be my Genji!"

"I be your what?"

Slightly taken aback, the boy tried to explain, "You know, in the book? Im Koremitsu, you're Genji? I'm your attendant, you're my master, kind of thing? Ah, whatever. Go change into something nicer and we'll go see the town!"

"I thought you say I the master, so why you giving orders? I have school, still!" The girl protested her strange new acquaintance's promptness.

"That wasn't an order, just a suggestion you're going to take. Besides, you're up here trying to rub some crap out of your eye, not studying. A little bit of hooky will do you good. What do you say?"

Ku Fei stared hard at the boy for a few seconds, only to receive puppy dog eyes and a sly smile in return. With a sigh, she nodded.

"Awesome. Go get changed into something not school-ish and we'll go do something. I'll pick you up in half an hour, Sunshine," Koremitsu laughed, opening the door to reenter the school.

"Wh-What you call me?" Ku Fei asked just before he closed the door.

"Hm? Genji, I believe. Pick you up in half an hour!" He closed the door, leaving a rather confused Ku Fei up on the rooftop. She would have sworn he called her Sunshine, but that was ridiculous. Only one person had ever called her that, and only God knew where he was. Geez, she couldn't even stop thinking about him and his crap long enough to have a sort of conversation with a complete stranger! That she had a date with! Wait, what had just happened? How would that guy even know where to pick her up? Sighing, she decided to go get changed anyway.

_-----Author's other note: I hope you're still on board with everything, readers. If you're lost about something, just go ahead and ask and I'll get to you in a reply. Some things are to be handled in the future, but if I've missed something in the now or you're just curious, go ahead and ask about it. If it's supposed to be that way, I'll tell you._

_Koremitsu refers to Ku Fei as 'Genji', and it's a joke of his about a book called 'The Tale Of Genji'. Genji is the lead character, and his faithful retainer is Koremitsu. Since his defeat by Ku Fei, he now desires to serve her, his Genji._

_Oh, and to answer one question right now: Yes, the class thinks that Negi and his partners went to Ayaka's island for a week and that's where they were._

_I'm forgetting something that I'll remember after posting this, but oh well. Thanks for reading...-----_


	13. A Pretty Yellow Dress

_-----Author's note: If any of you don't dislike me for not updating like I used to (Fast), then I must be doing something wrong. I would be pissed if I were a reader. Then again, I deserve all the best and think so, whereas you may not think along the same lines for yourselves. Therefore, if you're not pissed, you have low self-esteem. How's that logic for you?_

_I do not own Negima!, but any other characters and ideas are my own. Enjoy...-----_

Crossing the room in silence, watched by one set of two eyes our heroine puts her favorite custom cd into her stereo and puts it on lucky number seven. She listens to the sound of the disk spinning before the music kicks in, and she starts to sing along with it; "I can dim the lights, and sing you songs full of sad things, we can do the tango just for two..."

-

In a certain dorm room a ways away, a certain hero of ours was singing the same song as he went about his business, watched by one set of two eyes, his own cd spinning away in his stereo, "...I can serenade and gently play, on your heartstrings, be your Valentino just for you..."

-

Asuna Kagurazaka watched with a single eyebrow raised as Evangeline ballroom danced herself around her house, singing at the top of her lungs as she went, "...Ooh, love! Ooh, loverboy! What you doing tonight? Hey boy!"

-

Chachamaru Karakuri watched with an emotionless (Albeit it unquestionably envious) gaze as Negi sang his heart out as he proceeded to get ready for his outing, "...Set my alarm, turn on my charm, that's because I'm a good old-fashioned loverboy!"

-

"Um," Asuna interrupted the vampire's singing, "Why the hell am I here, again?"

"Because I told you to be. Remember, this is your way of giving the boy to me," The blonde girl sneered as she continued to bob and weave her way gracefully around her living room, shedding articles of clothing as she went so she could change into something a bit nicer than a school uniform.

"My way of whating what to who, now?"

"Giving the boy to me," Evangeline repeated, her voice unchanged.

"And since when was he ever mine to give!?"

"You ARE his sitter, aren't you?"

"Of course I'm not! He's MY teacher!" Asuna fumed, standing up from the couch and waving her arms around like an idiot. A red idiot, actually, "And even if he was for me to give, why would I give him to you?"

"...I'd like for you and I to go romancing..."

-

"...Say the word, your wish is my command..."

"That doesn't answer my question, Negi-sensei," Chachamaru pointed out, watching the boy continue to sing as he popped into the bathroom to change pants, "What is it you and master are going to be doing, exactly?"

Hopping up and down in the restroom as he struggled to get the pants up, the boy replied nervously, "W-we're going to be...having a...social meeting between two friends."

"I do not understand, then. Why am I not allowed to come? Am I not your friend?"

Praying to God that he hadn't heard Chachamaru getting a little emotional, Negi replied, "No, that's not it at all! Of course you're my friend! It's just...Evangeline-san said to come by myself, so..." He stumbled out of the bathroom, his pants secured.

-

"No way! You see him as a walking blood bank just as much as a person! Let alone a-"

"When I'm not with you, think of you always..." Evangeline interrupted with her loud singing, now getting into her pale yellow dress, "I already told you; I had an epiphany."

"Getting your ass kicked by an old guy isn't an epiphophonony...thing...it's getting embarrassed!"

Not bothering to ask how Asuna knew about that, as Negi was probably the one to tell her, Evangeline replied politely, "It's an 'epiphany', and the old man had nothing to do with it. I'm glad he stopped me, but he was definitely not the reason."

"Ok, and your 'thing' changed you how?" Asuna demanded, zipping up the back of the dress as she was beckoned to.

"I realized something," Was the succinct response given.

"And that would be?" Baka red prodded.

The vampire, now set to go, spun around to stare Asuna in the face and declare, "I love Negi Springfield."

-

"It's not a date, so you don't need to worry about anything like that..." Negi mumbled, looking himself over in the mirror. In his cargo pants and white shirt, finished up with his black button up shirt on top, he had to admit he looked casually ready for a date.

"In the letter," Negi whipped around in shock to find Chachamaru holding the letter and reading it, "She expressly uses the words 'date', 'touch', 'secret', and 'bed'. 'Together' is also a word in here that I am not pleased with," The reticular cleansing fluid started to build in the corners of her eyes, which told Negi it was time to book or else he'd be late for his not-date and Evangeline may find herself so inclined to eviscerate him.

"I'll see you later!" The young teacher flung his door open and ran off at the speed of crying girl.

"There he goes again, that's my good old fashioned loverboy!" Masayoshi sang after Negi as he sprinted down the halls, the music spilling out from the now open dorm room.

Natsumi grinned as she hung off of his arm, "You like this song?"

Masayoshi nodded, not all that surprised that his date for the night didn't know it, "The only people who don't like Queen are the people who've never heard them!"

As the two passed Negi's room for their date, Masayoshi couldn't help but glance inside and find Chachamaru on her bed, doing what looked a good deal like crying. The boy stopped walking and took a step backwards to get a second look. Yeah, that was crying.

Natsumi had taken a look inside as well, and was in the room before Masayoshi had even balanced out the positives and negatives of entering. Er, not that he had wanted to leave, or anything.

"What's wrong, Chachamaru?" Natsumi asked, sitting beside the android and putting her arm around her shoulder.

Chachamaru, whom Masayoshi was PRETTY sure was a robot, sniffed before replying, "It's Negi-sensei..."

-

Ku Fei looked herself over in her usual Chinese dress, glad to have something to do other than mope. There was nothing wrong with moping, but everyone, including herself, knew it did not suit her all that well. Besides, she was young! When a cute (Albeit depressingly weak) boy asks you to go somewhere with them, you should go for it, sometimes! Screw Connor and his lying ass to hell! Snapping her out of her thoughts, and having her realize that she was grinding her teeth rather hard, was a knock at the door, accompanied by a voice.

"Hey!" The boy from earlier called, "Are you dressed yet, or am I too late?"

"You mean too early?" Ku Fei replied, moving for the door.

"...No, I meant too late."

The girl opened her door to find the grinning Koremitsu, who was quick to offer his arm for her to take. Not to the male's surprise, he knew he was rather charming, she accepted by planting a fist in his face.

"Why you trying act like we going out?" Ku Fei asked, passing him by in the hall.

"Technically," The boy spoke softly, rubbing his sore face as he started to follow after her, "We ARE going out. You see, before when you were back in the room, you were IN. Now that you've left the room you're OUT. Since you're going somewhere, and you're going with me, we're going out with each other! Isn't it fun how that works, Genji?"

"Where we going, anyway?" The Chinese girl asked, slowing down when she realized she had no clue.

"Oh," Koremitsu grinned, "I know just the place for our first da-"

Another punch to the face stopped him from finishing, and prompted a change in words.

"I know just the place!"

-

"And we at a beef bowl," Ku Fei let her head drop when the beef bowl became their clear destination. That in itself wouldn't be so bad, but it was the same blessed beef bowl that Connor had taken her and Kaede to once before, and where they had frequented several times after.

"Isn't it wonderful?" Koremitsu forced himself to make the best out of his poor destination. He was doomed to woo her here, though, it seemed.

"You understand what 'wonderful' mean?"

"...Working on a budget?"

"So this work for you?"

Koremitsu laughed off his not-date's comment, opening the door for her, "I like how you look at that aspect of what I said, and not the part implying that I've got as much money as a six-hundred-pound Czech hooker."

-

"Yeah, that sounds like a date, to me," Masayoshi nodded, handing the letter back to Chachamaru.

"It sounds like a proposal, to me!" Natsumi added, waving her arms around, "Negi-sensei's only ten!"

"It wasn't THAT serious, I don't think..."

"Did you read the part about the bed?"

"Er, yes, but..."

Natsumi hopped off the bed the group was perched on, "Now I keep thinking about what she wants to do with him on it! ...Is that...weird?"

Masayoshi smiled, "We'll not speak of it, dearest."

"So what do you propose I do?" Chachamaru asked, looking from one to the other for some help.

Natsumi and Masayoshi exchanged looks, then nodded, turning to speak to the robot at the same time:

Natsumi: Go and stop them!

Masayoshi: Leave them be!

Natsumi and Masayoshi: Wait, what?

The freckled girl shook her head, "Chachamaru is in love with Negi-sensei! She should go and do something about it!"

The spectacled boy shook his head, "If Evangeline is in love with Negi, doesn't she deserve the same kind of chance that Chachamaru does?"

The young actress pointed at Chachamaru, "But what about her feelings? She was crying just a few minutes ago over this!"

The young magician pointed at Chachamaru, "So are you saying that she doesn't care at all about Evangeline's feelings, or that her own feelings are worth more than Evangeline's?"

Natsumi threw her hands up into the air in frustration, "Well if you care so much about Evangeline, why don't you just go marry her!"

Masayoshi threw his hands up into the air in frustration, "Fine! Maybe I will!"

In less than the time it takes Negi to get into an awkward situation with a girl, Natsumi's eyes were big and watery and her bottom lip was poking up. She asked meekly, "Really?"

In less than the time it takes for Asuna to get into an awkward situation with Negi, Masayoshi was on his feet with his arms around Natsumi. He spoke softly, "Of course not. I'd never leave you."

After a few seconds of reassuring embracing, the two broke apart just in time to see the last wisps of Chachamaru's hair as she left the dorm room to go and find Negi.

"Wait for us!" Natsumi called, hurrying after her classmate.

"Not that I had reservations, or anything, heavens no," Masayoshi sighed, following.

-

Negi exhaled deeply as he looked around, taking in every inch of the completely repaired library before him. Library Island, in only two weeks, had been completely restored to its former glory. The engineering club had went at the job half-heartedly, but it was more than enough to do a spectacular job, by any standards. Hell, the crap they decided was bad enough to throw out was often of very high quality, just not up to their standards.

The sound of footsteps behind him caused the teacher to turn, finding Evangeline only a few yards behind him. It was one of the most confusing five seconds he had ever had in his life. His heart caught in his throat as she drew closer. Her pale yellow dress was a stark contrast to the black he had grown rather accustomed to seeing her in, and he wouldn't say he didn't think her beautiful in this particular shade. The light of the setting sun playing off of the water in the distance behind her only accentuated her in its vain efforts at beauty, as if the rest of the world were trying to be as attractive as she was in those seconds. A laughable endeavor, anyone would readily tell you.

It was rather remarkable how in those five seconds he didn't feel afraid for his own safety at all. No thought of how much blood he might be donating that night crossed his mind, no worry as to the scolding she may, and likely did, have in store for him. While they were both teachers to one another, both students to one another, in that short span of time, Negi found himself wondering if there was something else they were to each other. He had caught himself thinking about this a lot with various students of late, but the look in her eyes told him that she was thinking the exact same thing.

The blonde girl stopped a few feet short of her teacher, and said something that caught the boy rather off guard, "Hey."

"...Boya," He added on, unsure of what to do without that getting tossed onto the end.

Evangeline then did two other things that caught Negi off guard. She smiled, and said, "No. Just hey."

After clearing his throat, Negi couldn't help but ask, "So why here? Why meet me at Library Island?"

Evangeline shrugged, "Just on the off chance that the bookworm might be here..." She didn't go any further, but it was pretty implied that she was marking her territory.

This went completely over Negi's head, however, "No, Nodoka's back at the dorms, taking care of Matsuro. It really is a full time job, being a mom."

Evangeline frowned slightly at the thought of the two playing house with the bastard teacher Connor's kid, "And how's being a daddy treating you?"

Negi forced a chuckle, "It's not too tough, but Nodoka really does most of the work. I work during the day, and I see them for a couple of hours at night before I go back to my room. I'm really amazed by Nodoka, sometimes, and all the work she must do."

"I could do it, too," Evangeline mumbled.

"Pardon?"

"Do you love them, then?"

Negi froze up for a hair of a second, their eyes meeting and locking into a sort of staring contest. Neither one would blink. Negi was wondering if he even had the ability to blink, right then. More than that, though, he was wondering what he should say. Of course he loved them both, but he loved Asuna, Kaede, Ku Fei, Chachamaru, all of the people in his class! Before he had even formulated a reasonable thought or response, that hair of a second had turned into close to a minute.

Evangeline turned a little, breaking their stare and forfeiting the ill-formed contest, "So I guess that's a yes."

"Evangeline, I don't know what you want from me. Of course I love them, but you know that I love all of you, just the same."

"You don't know what I want from you, boya?" Negi wasn't sure if he should feel better or worse that she had called him boya, "I want to talk to you," She beckoned for him to follow her, which he promptly did.

"I didn't shrink out of the spotlight because the old man managed to hold me off, boya. Sure I wasn't happy about it, but it wasn't really all that important. Because two weeks ago, the same day as my fight, you and your band of merry crusaders went and killed the Mother, and put a stop to her mission."

Evangeline sat down at a small white table by the island's edge, Negi sitting across from her. The sound of the water swaying near them was soothing, though the overall feel of the rapidly approaching night didn't improve, "Evangeline, we both did what we had to do. There's no need to analyze everything that happened. It's as simple as that."

"Are you afraid that if you do analyze it, you'll think you made a mistake? That maybe you should have let her succeed, after all?" The vampire asked, her eyes rather stern as she stared at the increasingly uncomfortable teacher.

Negi shook his head, though, "No. I did the right thing. The price she was asking for was far too high, regardless of what she had to offer," A nearby fly was, for reasons he couldn't grasp, buzzing around the table. He quickly forgot about it, though, as Eva went on.

"What, the bookworm?"

"No. All of you. Most of you. Any of you," He shook his head again, "Nothing is worth giving a single one of you up."

"And I guess that's where we differ, boya. When I met her, and she showed me the future she could share with us...I thought that anything would be worth giving for it. To me...even though I couldn't have it, myself...to think I could help make the perfect world, to make up for the bad things I've done in my life...I would never have thought of making amends, a hundred years ago. Even a year ago, I wouldn't have."

"Evangeline, y-"

The blonde cut her instructor off, "I would have killed everyone in the city with a smile on my face. Not a problem. I would have killed you, and I would have killed every last ditz in that circus you call a classroom. Easy as pie. All that I could see was the prize. Redemption, peace of mind, forgiveness. Whatever you want to call it."

"You wouldn't have done it, Evangeline, I know you wouldn't have," Negi stated, diverting his eyes to the side.

-

"Wh-What are they talking about? Kill us!?" Natsumi asked, staring at them from their position atop the gargantuan library. It had been probably the scariest event in her life, but she had hung on to Chachamaru while she flew to the top to spy on her master and Negi. Even now, she was trembling and looking down was enough to make her stomach drop into her bowels.

"Quiet now, dearest!" Masayoshi urged his sweetheart, as he was rather entangled in what they were saying, as well.

Chachamaru was pretty engrossed, herself. The little tracker 'bug' she had sent to gather their conversation was working splendidly, catching every word and transmitting it to her accordingly. She was running the conversation over her speakers loud enough for the other two to hear, translated from English to Japanese for their benefit.

-

"No, boya, I would have. If the old man hadn't stopped me, I would have. Without a regret in the world. I'm glad he stopped me, though," Evangeline admitted, her voice somber and low.

Negi was quiet, his mind racing at what she was going to say, though he feared he knew what was coming.

"After she died and the aura went away, and I was left bedridden and alone..." Chachamaru felt a pang of what may very well have been guilt, "I had a lot of time to think about what happened, and what I was ready to do. The more I thought about it, the more I realized one thing."

Negi wasn't even breathing at this point, his hands were clenched tight beneath the table.

"I could wipe out everyone I know, use the worst kinds of magic to torture them until they couldn't scream anymore before I kill them, and not give a second thought to it. That's the kind of person I am. But as I thought about this, I realized that if I did kill everyone I know..."

'_Don't say it,'_ Negi silently pled in his mind.

"That you're the only one I would miss."

Both were quiet for what felt like forever. They both understood very well what she had just said, and they both knew that now that it had been said, things couldn't be like they used to be between them. She wasn't 'master' anymore, and he wasn't 'boya' anymore. Not to Evangeline, they weren't. She couldn't fall in love with a boy. Negi was more of a man than the countless adults she had met in her lifetime. Never again would she call him by that name.

"I thought it was because of who you were, who you resembled, but you're nothing like your father was, and everything that's happened between us over the last year has showed me that," She reached over the small table to cup Negi's cheek in her hand, "I'm in love with you."

Negi couldn't help but let the sad smile onto his face as he raised his hand to her own for a brief moment before standing up, turning his back to her, "I still don't know what you want from me, Evangeline," He muttered, not much above a whisper.

The addressed girl rose to her feet, taking a couple of steps to be almost directly behind the scarlet-haired boy, "I want you to love me, too."

"You know I love you, I-"

"I don't want you to love me like the other girls, Negi. I want you to tell me that you love me. Not because I'm in your class or I'm your responsibility. Because I'm me. That's what I want from you."

With a shuddering sigh, Negi shook his head sadly, not enough will in him to turn to face her when he said, "I don't love you."

Evangeline wrapped her arms around him from behind, pressing her face into his shirt, "Then lie to me. Tell me you do, just so I can hear it..."

Taking a deep breath as he steeled himself to say what he knew he needed to say, what he should have said a long time ago, he opened his mouth just slightly, "She's coming back."

Rather suddenly, Evangeline started to sob onto the back of his shirt as she slowly slid down him to the ground, "I know...I know she is..."

Negi finally turned, focusing in on the sobbing Evangeline hard until he caught a glimpse of a black and purple aura encircling her, trapping her. "You've had the dream, again..." He whispered weakly, understanding where her sudden epiphany had come from.

"What do I do, now?" The girl cried from the ground, tears pouring down her cheeks.

Negi dropped to his knees and pulled her into a hug, but could find no words to console her as the two sat there on the ground, holding each other.

-

Now, one must understand that Masayoshi, Natsumi, and Chachamaru were in a somewhat precarious situation. The bit of roof they had decided to perch themselves on was far from flat, and the tiles that it was comprised of weren't exactly the grandest of footholds. This not only made spying a bit more difficult, but it also helped one to distinguish who was insane and who was sane. Only an insane person would willingly go on top of Library Island without some form of safety device. That having been clarified, it shouldn't be hard to imagine that something would go awry.

"MAGIC!? What on earth are they talking about, Masa-kun?" Natsumi turned to gaze at Masayoshi, who returned her clueless expression with a nervous one of his own.

"I surely wouldn't know, my love..." He mumbled weakly, a bead of sweat sliding down the side of his face. He knew he most definitely looked like he was lying. He wasn't the actor of the two, that was for sure.

Before Natsumi could say that her boyfriend DID look like he knew something, something that happened caused something in Chachamaru's head to snap, and smoke started to spout from her right ear. A spurt of electricity lunged through her body, and she fell forward, hitting the roof and sliding over the edge of the building.

Natsumi opened her mouth and let out a shriek, but it didn't get very far as Masayoshi slapped his hand over her mouth, pulling out his quill with his free hand. He sloppily wrote out a circle on one of the tiles, then smashed his fist onto the tile above it, sending the scrawled upon tile flipping up into the air. After catching it, he flung it over the side of the building after Chachamaru, praying to the gods that Negi and Evangeline were too preoccupied with one another to notice the flash of magic snagging the once falling Chachamaru, and pulling her back up onto the roof.

Natsumi watched this unfold with wide eyes, her mouth still covered by Masayoshi's hand. The owner of the hand turned to look at her with a grim face, "I suppose we need to have a talk, dearest. But first, let's get this one to the smart girl, shall we? ...Hm, I think I broke my pinky!"

-

As the night went by, Ku Fei learned many things about Koremitsu. She learned that he was a pervert, couldn't go three sentences without making some kind of joke, couldn't use chopsticks to save his life and found them better suited for pretending to be some sort of vampiric walrus, that he was immature, thought he was smarter than he really was, was sort of a prick, and was a blast to be with.

"...And that's when I realized that my pants were in the fridge, and I was covered in peanut butter from the waist down."

"You kidding!"

"I'm dead serious. The lesson learned was never be the first one to fall asleep at a frat party. ...And then take their advice after they wake you up and ask a girl if she wanted a bite to eat. ...She didn't think it was funny."

Ku Fei took her time in laughing at the story, just about every negative thought gone from her mind, "You crazy! ...It was a good idea to come, thank you."

Koremitsu nodded sagely as he stood up, "It's always a good idea to come. It's also good to come a lot, but this coming is about done, my Genji."

Ku Fei stood up, as well, groaning, "Aw, is already time to go home?"

"Afraid so, my dear! I've got to be back at my place before eleven, after all..." Koremitsu looked to the clock on the wall to find it read out 10:34. It was time to go.

"Your parents get mad?" The girl pondered aloud as she followed him to the door.

"My parents? Not at all. I live alone! I'm my own man!"

"Ooh, so cool!" Ku Fei grinned sarcastically, giving him some applause.

Koremitsu held the door open for her with a big grin, "Aren't I just?" As she walked by him, his charming smile quickly turned to a grim scowl.

"So where you live?" The Chinese girl asked pleasantly, heading back towards the dorms.

"In the Eastern apartment complex in the city. I forget the name of it, actually..." The boy replied in an equally pleasant tone from behind her.

"Hm, I not know that one," Ku Fei stated, rubbing her chin as she slowed down as though that might help her think more clearly.

"It's not really a big deal..."

"You right. You come visit me sometimes, then?" She turned big hopeful eyes to her new friend, who shrugged, smiling wryly.

"Guess we'll see, won't we?"

"Hey!"

Both turned to find a rather large man in a dark blue sweater stalking up to them, and he didn't look particularly happy. What made the situation even nicer was that he had two large, even if a little smaller, thugs behind him.

"Empty your pockets and get the hell out of here!" The burly man commanded, only about ten feet away at this point, and still closing in.

"Actually," Koremitsu piped up, "I think you should turn out your pockets and get the hell out of here before I kick your ass."

Ku Fei wasn't the brightest of people out there, but she was certainly not a blind idiot. She knew that Koremitsu was no match for such a big guy, especially after his abysmal performance, earlier. She moved the get in front of him, but he held out his arm and tapped her back.

"Come here!" The man pulled out a knife, threw patience to the wind, and charged at the two. The girl looked like she would be good for something other than pocket change, and that didn't help his manners, at all.

"Wait!" Ku Fei shouted as Koremitsu jumped forward to meet the much larger man.

What happened next was more than just a surprise. It was an outright shock. Koremitsu pulled his balled up hand back mid dash and swung his fist straight up into the charging man's face, hitting him so hard blood exploded from his nose as it crunched back into his skull. The thug did a back flip, flying forward to land on his stomach right in front of Ku Fei. The knife he had once held shot out of his hand, but was caught by the boy before it got anywhere. He flung it at one of the two men, catching him by surprise and sticking him in the knee. The man tried to shout, but was silenced when the boy rushed in, lunging at him with a vicious spinning kick to the face. Blood spattered from his broken jaw as he spun up into the air and down to the ground. The last man tried to grab a hold of the kamikaze teen, but was paralyzed by a bone-crunching jab to the throat, followed by a kick to the stomach that nearly broke him in two.

None of the three men made a sound as Koremitsu looked at the blood on his hand with a raised eyebrow, "Aw, great. I'd better not catch a disease or I'm gonna be pissed."

Before he could estimate how many STDs the thug had, Ku Fei had jumped him, arms thrown around him in happiness, "I thought you a weakling! How you do that!?"

"I guess you're just a good influence, Genji! Being with you has made me stronger, and you haven't even taught me anything, yet!" Koremitsu laughed, returning her hug with his one not bloody hand.

"I definitely see you again!" Ku Fei promised, "Come see me tomorrow at dojo, I train you! You know where?"

"I'm sure I can find it! I'll see you there once school lets out, love. But I really need to get home, now, so I'll bid you a good night, now..." He eased out of her embrace, taking her hand and giving it a kiss, "Until tomorrow, then."

Ku Fei watched him go, smiling to herself the whole time. She certainly had someone to mention to Kaede, now.

-

Koremitsu wiped the blood off of his hand on the back of his pants, then stuck both hands into his pockets as he slowly made his way back home in the dark, a dull look in his eyes. He was having a hard time believing that Ku Fei had been so unquestioning about him, at all. He certainly wasn't about to complain about it, but that still didn't make it easy to believe. Maybe all Japanese girls were naturally trusting, he didn't know.

He made his way up the complex stairs to his apartment, then stuck a key into the lock and turned it. He opened the door, greeted by a familiar voice, "So how did it go?"

"Why don't you tell me?" Koremitsu replied, slamming the door shut behind him.

_-----Author's other note: Kick freaking ass. I seriously finished a chapter. Thanks to a certain promise I made with my brother, things should start happening better (Quicker), now. No promises, though, because I tend to break them. Thanks to Eternal-Longing, The Ansem Man, and Azureshot for bearing with me all the time. This chapter is mostly due to their patience and support. Thanks, guys. Thanks for reading...-----_


	14. At The Stroke Of Midnight

_-----Author's note: I do not own Negima!, but any other characters and ideas (Save for Masayoshi, who is Master Masa Random's) are my own. Enjoy...-----_

It was an interesting position to be in, to say the least. We're not talking about 'Negi Springfield with -Insert ANY girl's name, here- on top of him' interesting, we're talking about 'girlfriend just found out about my magic' interesting. What Masayoshi did next could very well decide her future, and more than likely his very own. He was aware of this, and thus was doing his best to clearly think it through and make a rational decision. Of course, being able to hear himself think might have helped.

"OH MY GOD! Magic is real!? Negi-sensei knows about it, and Evangeline can DO it!? YOU CAN DO IT!? Why didn't you tell me? How long have you been able to do it? How did you float Chachamaru back up, so easy? Why did you draw on the tile? Is your hand ok? Is Chachamaru ok? Who's the Mother!? Who else knows about magic? Can I do magic!? I hope I can, don't you hope? Can Zazie do magic? I've seen her do tricks before but I didn't think they were real! Can Setsuna do magic? She carries a sword, so maybe she knows about that kind of stuff, too! Will you show me some of your magic? Can you make yourself invisible? That would be so cool, wouldn't it Masa-kun? Haven't you ever had moments where you just wish you could disappear?"

The preceding hunk of words came from Natsumi's mouth rather quickly. Masayoshi believed that those were the first two seconds of her questions, which went on from the time they left Library Island to the time they arrived at Hakase's lab; About twenty minutes. The boy, naturally, did his best to answer the questions, which are as follow:

"Yes, dear. He can do it, too, sweetheart. Surely I can, my love. It's supposed to be a secret, pumpkin. Quite a long while, my little flower. It was simple magic, darling. I need circles to use my magic, cuddle bunny. Yes, honey. I hope so, muffin. Don't have a clue, precious. Not really sure, sugar plum. Maybe...I suppose if you'd like to, buttercup. Um, who? Don't know a Setsuna, either, honey bee. Er, perhaps later, sweety. I could for a brief time, jelly bean. It has it's perks, kitten. Having one right now, dearest..."

Was it so unreasonable to assume she needed to breathe, and would thus eventually black out from lack of oxygen? Or would at least pause long enough to suck in some air and he could think for a moment? Well, apparently it was, because he never did get that moment. He hadn't gotten further in his thought process than a severe burn victim past first base by the time they were ringing for entry into the robotics club. By being honest with her about the whole thing, though, he made the decision without getting to mull the revelation over.

As they stood there, ringing the doorbell over and over again and waiting patiently for a response, Masayoshi realized something. Not only had he just carried a freaking android for a twenty minute trek across unforgiving cement (His feet would never be the same), but he had also handled a girl, who was very close to him, discover magic and assault him with enough questions to start her own game show. And he had done it without blowing anyone's head off. His own, included. As he rang the bell for the eighth time, he was proud of himself.

"Suppose she isn't here?" The boy looked to the girl on his left, using his free hand to poke his glasses back up the bridge of his nose.

"No, she's in there. Hakase sleeps in the lab, I think, so she's probably just ignoring us. No way she's asleep yet, either," Natsumi checked her watch, "It's only 10:58! She's still doing stuff, at this hour, for sure."

"Well then, how do we get her to..." Masayoshi tried to shift the heavy robot from his now sore right shoulder to his left one, losing his balance in the process. He quickly found himself in a pile on the ground before the steel doors, crushed under the busted Chachamaru.

"Hm, good question, Masa-kun..." Natsumi put her chin in her hand as she thought about how to draw her classmate out. Masayoshi's predicament right next to her going unnoticed. She snapped her fingers, "Oh! I've got it! Masa-kun," She called loudly, not looking at her flattened boyfriend, "I conceived immaculately, last night!"

As Masayoshi's nose spouted forth copious amounts of blood at the simple thought of an otherworldly experience so fantastic that it shook his love Natsumi's world into pregnancy without actually doing the nasty, the door to the complex flew open. Hakase popped out and explained rather loudly how that was utterly impossible, and that she would run numerous tests on Natsumi to prove it. Natsumi stood there, a little surprised, though she had expected her words to draw the scientist out.

Once done ranting in a stunningly stereotypical mad scientist manner, Hakase looked down to find Chachamaru sprawled out rather suggestively on top of Natsumi's boyfriend, whose name escaped her, at the moment. It didn't help her observations that the boy was bleeding profusely from his nose in an almost comical fashion, and his efforts to get out from beneath her were little to none. Very lost in her own thoughts, Hakase mutters, "I haven't given you the upgrade that lets you do that, yet..."

The freckled performer looks down for the first time at her squashed boyfriend, seeing the blood all over the place and him under heavy machinery/an unconscious classmate, "MASA-KUN'S DEAD!" She shrieked, her eyes then quickly rolled up in the back of her head, and she blacked out.

-

'_Come here...'_

"No! You can't be here!"

'_I am everywhere...'_

"S-Stay away from me!"

Yue Ayase, plummeting so much as sprinting, continued to dash through the maelstrom of shadows and haze as fast as she could. There was no way this could be happening! It was impossible, it was supposed to be finished! But...But wasn't it happening, anyway? Her normally collected and polished mind scattered under the waves of panic as the ground itself turned into an enemy, the twisting darkness latching onto her, tripping her.

As she fell forward onto her stomach, the moist ground trying to envelope her with serpent-like arms of shadow, the voice called out, _'You are a dirty stain on the canvas that is the world. You must be removed...'_

Tearing desperately at the formless enmity surrounding her, the voice drawing closer with every fractured second that seemed unending, Yue realized that there wasn't a way out. She knew at a conscious level that there was no way she could escape something that was everywhere all at the same time, but still her body continued to try and free itself in vain. Every word spoken by the chilling voice echoed through her very being, dashing her strength and collapsing her will.

'_I've found you...' _It jeered, now as though it were inside her very head.

Screaming in thoughtless terror as she ripped at the swirling miasma, Yue slowly vanished into the sea of darkness.

Nodoka's heart practically gave out when, at 11:04 PM, Yue started screaming at the top of her lungs, thrashing around in her bed as though her very life depended on it. Matsuro, her cradle beside Nodoka, began to wail loudly at the intrusion upon her sleep, and Haruna rolled out of her bed, screaming, "RAPE!"

The quietest of the trio hopped from her bed, rushing to her distressed friend, "Yue! Yue, wake up! You're having a nightmare!" Nodoka called loudly, catching the sleeping girl by the shoulders and steadying her.

"...No rape?" Haruna asked, heaving a sigh of relief as she slid her sketch pad back under the bed.

Yue's eyes flew open, tears leaking down her cheeks and onto her hair as a result. Nodoka barely recognized the girl's eyes as they darted around in the dark, filled with horror and panic. The leaky eyes landed on her own after a few seconds, and the small girl lunged up, throwing her arms around Nodoka and clinging to her as though her life depended on it, trembling violently.

Haruna watched in quiet wonder as the two sat on Yue's bed, holding each other. The tears continued to fall from Yue's wide eyes, though she wasn't crying. Her breath was drawn in rapid, shaky rasps through her nose, her lips pursed in a displeased grimace. Or maybe that was what she always looked like, it just seemed more significant, right now, Haruna wasn't sure. The only other noise in the room was Matsuro's crying, which no one was ready to address, just yet.

After a long few moments of this, Nodoka asked beside Yue's ear, still holding on, "What was it?"

Haruna wanted to know, too, because nothing should set Yue off like that. Nothing. She held her breath as Yue's lips parted enough for her to mutter a sentence.

"I remembered that Mershon's Bookstore is having a clearance blowout until midnight!" Yue scooted back, snatching her alarm clock from her bedside stand, "It's only 11:06! There's still time if I run! I'll be back soon!"

And with those words, Yue leapt from the bed and, still in her nighty, flew from the dorm as though it were about to fill with the plague. Nodoka watched in wonder as Haruna started to bang her head against the wall, saddened that the reason for such an outburst wasn't because of, say, Negi, but instead a sale.

It was about this time that Nodoka realized Matsuro had lapsed into total psycho freak out crying mode, which meant it was going to be next to impossible to console her. She looked to Haruna in a dramatic fashion, "Haruna! Emergency tactic number seventeen!"

In under two seconds Haruna had retrieved her sketch pad and whipped up a drawing to help solve their problems: Whip up a stunningly chiseled and magnificently gorgeous naked teen for them to ogle!

Nodoka's eyes quickly wandered south of the border, then blood spewed forth from her nose as she fell backwards, covering her eyes, "I said emergency tactic number SEVENTEEN!"

"That one isn't summon Clyde, then?" Haruna grinned stupidly, using her finger to wipe back the little bit of red on her upper lip.

The blonde teen looked around, confused, then looked down, realization dawning, "Ladies, how many times are we gonna do this? I got my own thing to do..."

"Only as many times as you look like that..." Haruna drooled.

Matsuro laughed.

-

Yue darted from wide pool of light to wide pool of light as she dashed through the night, the streetlights above almost a bastion of hope that kept the shadows at bay. She caught herself half expecting the ground to turn against her when she was outside of the streetlight's welcome glow, and found that her steps inside the circles of light were just a bit slower, anything to keep her in the light a little longer.

Her jog wasn't an unbearably long one; She reached her destination in about fifteen minutes. As she stopped in the glorious luminescence of the streetlight across the street from her destination, Yue was practically scared to death when a hand fell on her shoulder

Asuna pulled her hand back sharply when her diminutive friend yelped, and wobbled forward a couple of steps as though she were a dying old lady, "Yue! A-Are you ok?"

Recognizing her friend's voice, baka black spun around, "You shouldn't sneak up on people like that!"

"Who's sneaking?" Asuna replied, "Me, or the girl in a nighty out for a midnight jog?"

"...There's a book sale..."

"Ha, right! And I'm just out for a leisurely cartwheeling session!" Baka red performed a cartwheel, winding up beside her friend, "So what are you doing in this neck of the woods? ...City?"

Yue looked up at Asuna, then over to her destination, "I could ask you the same thing..."

"Wh-What?" Asuna turned a little red, "It's not like I'm doing anything WEIRD, or anything..."

"Then why aren't you back at the dorms?"

"W-Well, Negi's not back yet, and I don't know where Chachamaru went. Konoka is still in Kyoto with her dad, so I'd be all by myself, and all..."

Yue motioned to the home before them both, "And would you rather sleep here, then?"

Asuna nodded slowly, then snapped out of her reverie and shook her head fiercely, "N-NO! That's not it! I'm just...getting an early start on my deliveries..." She glanced at her watch, "...At 11:25 at night..."

"One day, you'll find the courage to talk to him about it, again," Yue reassured her friend, whom she wondered how long had been standing outside of the house. She then crossed the street and walked up the short walkway to the door, Asuna shortly behind.

"Um, wh-what are we doing? You're not gonna tell on me, are you!? He'll think I'm a stalker!"

Yue knocked on the door, "No, that's not why I'm here. It's actually probably a good thing that you're here, Asuna."

Takamichi opened up his door, looking from Asuna to Yue, then frowning a little, "You've had it, too?"

"Can we talk?" Yue asked, guessing from the static glow of the television in the house that Death Specs wasn't planning on bed anytime soon, anyway.

-

Natsumi shot up, looking from her left to her right, confused, sore, and somewhat disoriented. It was dark, save for the occasional flicker of light from the adjacent room. In these brief spurts of light the freckled middle schooler found that she was lying on what appeared to be a steel operating table, as she was surrounded by bits and pieces of various android parts. She squeaked when she found a cybernetic eye on the table, apparently gazing at her. After having successfully slapped the eye across the room, she examined the dim room in search of Masayoshi, Chachamaru, and Hakase. It didn't take much effort to find Masayoshi, who was only a few feet away from her, on his own operating table. Chachamaru was on the other side of him in their row of tables, still very much unconscious, as was the boy.

Relieved to see him breathing at a normal, not dead, rate, Natsumi slowly crawled off of her table, and looked in the direction of the room with the flickering light. The light was accompanied by a low hissing sound, a drill of some sort, perhaps? Maybe a torch? She edged towards the room, breathing low as if she might disturb some sort of holy power if she were any louder. As quiet as a dead church mouse, Natsumi poked her head into the new room to find the back of Hakase, hunched over a table and surrounded by enough metal to bang your head to. Feeling a tad more secure at the discovery of the light (It was, indeed, a blowtorch) and her friend, Natsumi made her presence known once the flame was silenced, "Hakase, hey!"

The scientist whipped her head around so fast that her mask flipped up over her head, "Natsumi! How long have you been there?" She asked, flinging a tarp over the table and its contents.

The performer raised her eyebrow as she saw what appeared to be a human hand hanging over the table's edge, but dismissed it as yet another android bit, "A few seconds, is all. What are you working on?"

"I don't really see how that concerns you at all," Hakase admitted bluntly, making sure the torch was safely turned off and then removing her mask completely.

"Just curious..."

Hakase shrugged, "Just a project for a friend, no big deal. Anyway, what did you and loverboy do to my precious Chachamaru, huh?"

Natsumi flinched back at the accusation in the voice aimed at her, "Actually, we didn't do it! We were sort of...not really 'stalking' Negi-sensei, but...following him in secret and watching what he was doing...and she just sort of...blew a fuse, or something! Honest, we didn't break her!"

"And just what might have caused THAT to happen? Did you see something bad? Bearing in mind that by 'bad' for Chachamaru, I mean 'good' for Evangeline," Hakase muttered dryly, moving for the room Natsumi had emerged from.

"Y-You knew about the date!?" Natsumi made an 'eep' sound as she hopped aside out of Hakase's way, then followed after her.

"Of course I knew about it. Little goes on that involves Chachamaru I don't know about. I suppose I'd better check her for any file damage. I already have a rudimentary idea of what happened to her wiring, but there's no predicting just how severe the memory loss is, at the moment..."

As Hakase spoke, she flipped back the tip part of Chachamaru's left ear, connecting a cable to it that ran to a monitor that had been behind Natsumi's table. The monitor flicked to life, and Hakase stepped up to it, her fingers dancing across it masterfully as she tapped buttons and skimmed through data files.

"Well, it doesn't look like anything was lost that she didn't have backed up, so everything's alright. She just had the equivalent of an aneurism," The scientist nodded, her forehead gleaming in the light of the touchscreen.

Natsumi did a little golf clap, "So you can fix her, now?"

"No, not now. I have to...wait...what's this?"

Hakase, in checking the recent files folder, stumbled onto a script of what Chachamaru had heard before shorting out.

_Negi Springfield: "She's coming back."_

_Evangeline A.K. McDowell: "I know...I know she is..."_

_Negi Springfield: "You've had the dream, again..."_

_Evangeline A.K. McDowell: "What do I do, now?"_

"Oh my..." Hakase mumbled, scrolling up to get all of the conversation. She skipped out on the lovey dovey crap, focusing mainly on the entire Mother ordeal, "Well that certainly does complicate things..." She whispered, closing the folder.

"Wait, so you know about this person, too?" Natsumi asked in a whisper, her hand by her mouth to accentuate the fact that she was trying to be quiet, as thought it were a taboo topic, "Does she know MAGIC!?" She hissed the last word a bit louder, hardly able to contain herself.

"Well apparently you do. Yay for you, though you've chosen to find out at a bad time. Yes, the Mother knows how to use magic, but that's hardly important. What IS important is that she's coming back. How, I'm not quite sure, but certainly there can be differences in death for a demon than there would be for a human. It would be arrogant to think it impossible, unless as a demon she did not experience death, only a kind of temporary static period. I now am left to wonder how she will come back, where it will happen, and perhaps most importantly, when?"

Natsumi held up a hand, "Um, hey, did you say 'demon'? I'm pretty sure I heard 'demon' in there..."

Hakase nodded, "I did say demon."

Natsumi lowered her hand, thinking, then raised it again, "You mean like...a monster, 'demon'?"

"Demon, an evil spirit or a devil. A basic definition, for a basic mind," Hakase shrugged off Natsumi's understandable fright and surprise, "The Mother is a demon from another dimension who causes people to have dreams, in which they are pursued by a voice and swallowed by darkness. The dream is a facet of her magic, which leaves an aura on the person, who then becomes a target. Her followers, a media named terrorist group known as the Angels, then go about their business killing those whom the Mother has targeted so that she can harvest their souls through a link established by the dream. She used the raw energy of the souls to become corporeal, to take on a physical form, so that she could become a permanent part of our world, rather than fade away. Shortly after this happened, however, Negi-sensei and Connor-sama were able to confront and kill her in her physical manifestation."

Natsumi stared blankly at Hakase for a few seconds, then crawled back up onto her table and curled up into a ball on her side, where she lay in silence.

Hakase waved Natsumi's behavior off like an unpleasant odor, though she admitted, "You took that rather well."

Still curled up in a ball, Natsumi, who was familiar with the Angels and their exploits of terrorism from the news, asked several questions in tandem:

"Demons are real!? Other dimensions are real, too!? I HAD that dream a while ago! Does that mean those thugs on tv were after me, too!? Negi-sensei and Connor-sensei SAVED THE WORLD!? ...Connor-sama!?"

Hakase answered each question as quickly and bluntly as possible, "Yes. Yes. Yes. Yes. Leave it be."

Natsumi accepted the succinct replies she was given, mulling things over for a few moments while Hakase continued to scan Chachamaru's recent files for anything concerning the Mother's return that she may have previously overlooked. After having thought about it, the freckled girl asked, "If she's coming back, then doesn't that mean we'll have that dream again?"

Hakase nodded, but didn't say anything.

"What if we just don't sleep?"

"You won't be able to go very long without sleep. A couple of days at the very most, so don't think that's the way out."

"Is there a way out?"

Hakase shrugged, "Go to sleep, have the dream, confront the voice, and wake up."

"You mean you actually let it catch you?" Natsumi shivered at the very thought.

"After you confront the voice and the Mother in the dream," The scientist opened up a folder jam packed with picture of Negi, "You stop having the dream. You have the aura, still, but at least you can sleep after."

"...What was she like?"

Hakase stopped moving for a split second, then resumed her work, "She was...nice. A bit of an idealist, but nice." When Natsumi sent her the most confused look she may have ever gotten, the scientist went on, "Did I not tell you the point of all of this? Well, it doesn't matter. You can leave Chachamaru here. I'll tend to her after I finish my other project."

Natsumi, in pure ditzy fashion, slipped off the edge of the table while she tried to get out of the fetal position, "Something's taking precedence over Chachamaru? What kind of project are you doing for your friend?"

"Come on, dearest," Masayoshi spoke for the first time since their arrival in the facility, "She doesn't seem to be in much of a sharing mood, and it isn't polite to pry." Climbing off of his table, Masayoshi gave a little bow, then take Natsumi by the arm and called over his shoulder, "Good luck with your work."

Hakase watched the two go, not entirely sad about it. There was work that had to be done, "Connor-sama...you never told me about a comeback," She muttered, leaving Chachamaru alone on the table.

"M-Masa-kun, how much of that did you hear?" Natsumi asked, stumbling along after her boyfriend, who seemed to be in a hurry to get back to the dorms.

"Well, dearest, there's a fine line between nothing and everything, and I'm currently doing a little dance on the rather worrisome side of everything, so let's have a bit less talking and a bit more walking. Or hey, even better, let's jog!" Masayoshi was talking a lot faster than Natsumi was used to hearing, and at the end of his little spurt of words, she had to start running to keep up with him.

"Masa-kun, slow down!" She panted, "I c-can't keep up with you!"

Masayoshi hopped back to wind up behind her, and he scooped her up in his arms, taking her with him at a speed there was no way she would have been able to match, "Not a problem, dearest, this suits me just fine!"

Natsumi clung to him for fear of him losing his tight grip and her falling while moving so fast. The buildings around them seemed to meld into one another as they sped by, a solid blur of a city that lost form around them. Before she had managed to catch her breath, she found herself outside of her room, still in Masayoshi's arms. As the boy tried to set her down, her shaky legs hardly managed to support her, and she had to hold herself up against the wall beside her door.

"Wh-What was that all about, Masa-kun?" She asked, still wobbling.

Masayoshi shrugged, looking up at the ceiling, "What was what about? I simply wanted to get you home as fast as I could so you could stay up all night, gossiping with your friends and practicing parts for a play, and do whatever else sounds entertaining! Maybe you could go take a bath with that tall...big girl! I could go get you a Playstation 2, how's that sound? Hang on, I'll be right back..."

Masayoshi turned to leave, but Natsumi caught him by the shoulder, "Wait, what are you talking about, Masa-kun?"

Masayoshi looked over his shoulder, nodding, "Right, that stuff isn't all that interesting. I'll be back with some Playgirls in a couple of minutes!"

Now blushing at the thought of her boyfriend snagging her some pornographic material, Natsumi pressed the question, "What are you talking about? What's wrong?"

Masayoshi spun around, stepping into her and wrapping his arms around her, letting her surprise keep his girlfriend quiet. She slipped her arms under his and lowered her cheek onto his shoulder, not sure what else she could do, "Please, please..." Masayoshi whispered beside her ear, "Please promise me you won't go to sleep, tonight..."

Natsumi hugged him tighter, "You heard Hakase...The most we could go without sleep is a couple of days."

"A couple of days knowing you'll be safe means more to me than you could possibly imagine. Promise me," Masayoshi took enough of a step back out of the hug to look Natsumi in the eyes.

She felt her throat get sore when she saw the tears on Masayoshi's face, "Oh...You're gonna make me cry, too..." She admitted with a choked laugh, wiping his face dry with her sleeve, "On one condition."

Masayoshi nodded, "Anything you want."

"Stay here, tonight."

"What about your roommates?"

Natsumi shrugged, "Who cares? Chizu-nee sleeps with Kotaro-kun all the time, and Ayaka will get over it. Deal?" The girl reached for her key.

"Lead the way, dearest."

-

"I'm gonna break his skull in..." Asuna fumed, her face an interesting shade of purple that suggested this time, she might actually do it. Her hands, which were balled up into white hot fists, were trembling a little bit on her lap.

"Asuna-kun, you shouldn't be angry with him. If our situations were switched, I could easily see me doing the exact same thing. Besides, he hasn't known for very long. He may just be waiting for the right moment to do it, or maybe to find out how to even do it at all," Takamichi sympathized with his small friend.

"No," Yue now broke in, "I agree with Asuna, this time. It was wrong for him not to tell us about this as soon as he found out. It was wrong of you, too, for that matter. We're all in danger here, and being in the know would have helped to have us prepared."

Takamichi looked at the clock on his wall. It read 11:54, which meant that it was about time to send these two off to bed, "Yue-kun, Asuna-kun, I believe we've covered everything that needed covering, for the night. Yue, I'm going to call Negi-kun and have him escort you home."

"What about Asuna?" The philosopher wondered aloud.

Takamichi glanced at Asuna, then back at Yue, "I would like for Asuna to stay here, for the night. There are some things we should discuss. ...While we're both still able. That is, of course, if you don't mind, Asuna-kun?"

If there were a suitable adjective to use for incredibly prominent stammering, blushing, rambling, and head shaking, it would have been the perfect adjective for Asuna, right then.

Yue nodded, not displeased with how that went, "Alright, but an escort really isn't necessary. The Angels don't seem to have regrouped enough to make any sort of attack, especially not on me."

"All the same," Takamichi flipped his cell phone open, punching in Negi's number.

-

Negi's eyes turned to his pocket as his phone began to ring.

Evangeline, whose head was currently in his lap, asked quietly, "Do you have to get it?"

Negi glanced at the name on the phone. It was Takamichi. For him to be calling him at this hour likely meant it was relatively important. The clock on the corner of the phone read 11:56. What he was doing now, however, seemed more important.

"I see no need," Negi said softly, turning his phone off. From atop Library Island, the two resumed star watching.

-

"He's not answering..." Takamichi mumbled, flipping his phone shut, "I suppose I could always take you back."

Yue shook her head, moving for the door, "I won't allow it. I came here by myself, and I'm going to go back by myself. Thank you for the talk and for the information," She opened the door, "I'll see you tomorrow, Asuna."

Takamichi and Asuna watched the door close, then the man of the two muttered, "Such a hard, wide head she has."

Yue started the walk back home, recalling what Takamichi had told them so that she could mull over any of the details she may have overlooked the first time. The discussion he had relayed to them played out in her mind a little something like this:

"_So, you're really leaving, then?" Takamichi asked the woman before him, one hand in his pocket, the other bearing a cigarette as he leaned against the wall out in the hall outside of the teacher's lounge. Shizuna was carrying a box filled with the contents of her old desk, "You'll be just as safe here at the school as anywhere else. Hell, probably a lot safer."_

"_Keep it down, Takahata," Shizuna hushed him as a cluster of children walked by, "I'm not leaving for my own safety. I'm leaving because it's just too much for me to handle, right now."_

"_In other words, you're off to join them again, right?"_

"_No," The woman replied, grabbing his cigarette and extinguishing it on the side of a trash bin before throwing it away. Both ignored the burn mark, "I'm not going to help them, but I'm certainly not going to get in their way, either. I want nothing to do with what happens. I can't make a decision that I can live peacefully with."_

"_So doing nothing and leaving it all up to fate is the right choice?"_

"_I didn't say it was the right choice, but it's a choice I can be satisfied with. That's all that matters. Now if you'll excuse me," Shizuna turned to leave, pausing when Takamichi spoke up._

"_At least tell me this...Will she be coming back as a physical being, or will she need to perform the Withdrawal a second time, and collect more souls?"_

_Shizuna looked over her shoulder, "And what makes you think that I would know more than you?"_

"_Because you were one of them. You stayed with them, talked with them, met with her multiple times. You must have some clue. Anything you could tell me...would redeem you for abandoning us, now, after we gave you a second chance."_

_That stung. Maybe it was because it was true, maybe it was because it was coming from him, maybe it was because she wanted to pick a side. Whatever it was, it poked a hole through her resolution._

_Turning her head back around so that all she had offered to Death Specs was her back, the woman confided, "The Mother won't be coming back as a corporeal being at first, no. Once she is reborn, she will merge with the host body, and take control after consuming the holy vessel's soul, and become perfect."_

_Takamichi glared holes in the back of Shizuna's head, "So the entire point of her becoming physical was so that she could be killed, and be reborn into this other person?"_

"_Jesus Christ was made physical so that he could die and be reborn to redeem the world, much like our Mother."_

"_This is no second coming of anything, so don't get all preachy to me..."_

"_I thought you wanted me to talk?"_

"_So who is the eventual host body?" Takamichi jumped back on the path of questions, as he was liable to lose Shizuna at any moment, "Where is it?"_

"_I'll not say," The woman shook her head, "But..." A few seconds passed as she gave Takamichi a helpful hint, "She has been marked since before she was born, and is only just becoming ready to contain our savior."_

"_Is there some sort of tell? Something that happens to them beforehand so that we can catch it, and quarantine them? Try and contain her before she causes any damage?" Takamichi assumed there was nothing they could do to save the vessel, and instead was focusing on damage control._

"_A prerequisite? You mean something magical like falling in love? Ha, ha, wouldn't that be nice?" Shizuna couldn't help but grin._

"_Is there anything to watch for?" Takamichi asked again._

"_You'll not know who the holy vessel is until it is too late. She will then realize her full potential, and our savior will be reborn as a harbinger of change, a power unrivaled in our world. She will be perfect."_

_Takamichi frowned, waving Shizuna off, "Take your idealism and get out of here."_

_Shizuna, without a word, marched on down the hall and disappeared around the corner._

Shizuna had been rather helpful, whether it be through guilt or whatever else. She had told them that the vessel would be a girl, and that it was only just becoming ready to contain the Mother. That might mean that it was a coming of age thing, which could easily make the girl near Yue's age. She shivered at the thought. How she had laughed at the thought of love being a prerequisite wasn't funny, either. What if that in itself was a hint? Yue groaned as she opened up her door, ready to go back to bed, dream or not.

-

Natsumi glanced at her clock, which was flashing her a 12:00. She was currently in her bed, her back to Masayoshi's chest as the two sat up together against the wall. His arms around her stomach as they sat together in amiable silence, he occasionally lowered his lips to the top of her head in a gentle kiss, as if to check and see if she were still awake without actually speaking. He could tell because she would smile and her breathing would quicken just a little bit.

'_So this is what love feels like...'_ She thought slowly, bringing a hand up to his and giving it a squeeze, _'It's nice...'_

_-----Author's other note: If I forgot anything, may damnation fall upon my head in the form of viruses and popup ads. ...Only not. Anyway, Clyde Metro is property of Midnight Sleeper, and I used him here with the permission that everyone throws around in the Train Station like single bills at a strip club. Thanks for reading and reviewing, considering the story had been dead for so long...-----_


	15. Return To Sender

_-----Author's note: I do not own Negima!, but any other characters and ideas are my own (Save for Masayoshi, who is Master Masa Random's). Enjoy...-----_

"...And so I didn't get my undies back, but he sure as heck didn't get his cross back!" Makie exclaimed loudly, pumping a fist into the air. She had just finished telling her story to the class on how she had awoken that morning to an attempted, and successful, panty raid, only managing to snatch the necklace off the boy shortly before giving chase.

"You STOLE a boy's cross?" Misora asked incredulously, pointing at her pink-haired friend in accusation.

The accused girl held up the necklace with the black cross on it to show all, "And I'd do it again!"

"That look like Koremitsu's," Ku Fei stated blandly as she walked towards her seat.

-

Koremitsu, in Negi's abandoned dorm, handed the wad of panties over to Chamo, who proceeded to worm himself into the mound. He thrust a neatly folded sheet of paper up into the boy's now panty-less hand, saying, "Done and done. All that I know about those three!"

Grinning, Koremitsu replied, "Totally worth it. Who needs dignity nowadays, anyway?"

"Well said, new kid!" Chamo grinned, breathing deep, "May I ask why you want to know about those three, though? You seem like a nice kid and all, but just out of curiosity..."

"Hard to make a move when you don't know what game you're playing, am I right?"

"Ooh, an openly perverted guy looking for game! What a breath of fresh air."

"Ooh, an openly perverted rat with a panty fetish! What a...wow, I never thought I'd say that."

Chamo grinned broadly, now rolling from side to side, "Two of them aren't even here, though! You're way off base to be asking about them, kid."

Koremitsu scanned the paper very quickly, then jammed it into his pocket, turning to leave, "Totally worth it."

-

Ku Fei sat down in her usual spot, but before she could even adjust to a comfortable position, Kaede was in front of her, looking down with an interested gaze, "Are you alright?"

The Chinese girl tilted her head sideways, "I look bad?"

"No, but you were talking in your sleep a lot, last night. Most of it didn't sound good..."

Ku Fei leaned over the desk enough that Kaede felt obliged to lean in, opening one eye just slightly, "I just have nightmares about voice, that all."

Kaede mouthed an 'oh', standing back upright, "Well, that's all taken care of, so we don't need to worry about it. Anything else?"

The blonde shook her head, and Kaede moved to her own seat.

"So do you remember what he looked like?" Ako asked Makie, who was still ranting about the indignity of her undies being robbed from her, and waving the necklace around like a war trophy.

"Hm? Why?"

"So you can report him, of course! We can't have unruly perverted thieves breaking into our rooms, can we?" The nurse wagged a finger as she talked.

"OF ALL THE UNADULTERATED OUTRAGES I'VE EVER SEEN!"

Everyone in the room cringed a little as Ayaka's voice boomed into the classroom as she followed after Natsumi and Chizuru, "THIS IS BY FAR THE WORST!"

"Wow, Natsumi looks beat..." Akira noted, pointing just slightly in her direction.

It was true. The actress was dragging her feet, her eyes were barely open, and she was just a wee bit on the sluggish side. Ayaka, on the other hand, was livid as all hell on Christmas morning, minus the presents. Chizuru was a pretty pink color, and giggling like a little schoolgirl who had just watched a Barbie movie while being suffocated with laughing gas.

"Looks like they found Yotsuba's Mary Jane," Yuna nodded sagely, stroking a nonexistent beard.

"Yeah, I wonder...wait, WHAT!?" Ako gasped, hopping back a step.

"How else do you think she keeps so pleasant all the time?"

"_A good diet,"_ Yotsuba confided bluntly as she strolled by them casually.

"_I knew it all along!"_ The basketball player continued to nod, imitating Yostuba's voice the best she could.

"Hey," Akira mumbled, "I just realized something..."

"What?" Makie lowered the cross a little bit and glanced at her friend.

"Why did he only take YOUR panties? Mine were in there, and so were Yuna's!"

"Yeah, what's wrong with my panties!?" Yuna fumed, now somewhat jealous.

-

"Yeeeeeeessssssss..." Chamo cheered as he rolled around in Makie's underwear, "These are so much nicer than Akira's or Yuna's..."

-

"I CAN'T BELIEVE YOU SLEPT WITH HIM! IN OUR ROOM! RIGHT NEXT TO US!" Ayaka continued to freak out over the scene of those tow together in bed as she woke up. Granted she hadn't seen anything gratuitous, but her mind was chock full of what they had no doubt been doing prior to her awakening.

"Natsumi, ha, ha...I'm sure it was very beautiful...Ha, ha...Next time, talk to me first...Ha, ha..." Chizuru couldn't seem to stifle her laughter and giggling long enough to get a clear shot of words through. She produced a startlingly large leek from seemingly nowhere, "I could help, ha, ha..."

Natsumi, who was very close to Chizuru and likely her best friend, was having a difficult time interpreting what that meant. The nervous and embarrassed laughter wasn't helping her figure it out, either. Half of the time the girl was talking she was laughing and had her hand up to her mouth, and she hadn't stopped blushing since she saw the scene. Maybe she couldn't figure it out because of how tired she was. It hadn't helped her case much when she said that she hadn't gotten any sleep. ...Actually, that was when Chizuru started to blush.

"I would appreciate any help you could give..." Natsumi yawned, slumping down into her seat.

Ayaka brought a hand up to her nose, an instant reaction to the possibility of something wanting to come bursting out. Thankfully, nothing did.

This was when something rather strange and unpredicted happened. Asuna Kagurazaka spun her way into the room humming to herself as she did. She did a roll over Negi's desk, landing gracefully as she skipped the distance in dance over to Ayaka, whom she took by the hand and proceeded to ballroom dance around the room, much like she had observed Evangeline doing with herself. Lost like a blind man in a maze, the rep merely shuffled along with Asuna as they danced, baka red singing as they went.

"What's a good word for 'confused' and 'afraid'?" Misa asked, watching the two waltz around.

"I don't think there is a single word suitable for this entire thing," Madoka admitted, her eyes following just as closely as everyone else's in the room.

"Ten yen has Asuna as the better dancer! Dance off!" Sakurako cheered loudly.

"WHAT!?" Ayaka yelled in shock, breaking off her dance with Asuna, who continued to spin around the room whilst singing. She let it go to keep her attention on Asuna, however, "What is the meaning of this, Asuna?"

Asuna stopped spinning and lowered her mouth to Ayaka's ear. While still bent over, she continued to sway back and forth as she spoke. Now, Ayaka had thought that her nosebleed crisis had been averted once Natsumi and Chizuru had left the scope of her attention, but she was sorely mistaken, and now, after listening to why Asuna was so happy, found herself in dire need of tissues. ...And a bucket.

"Well THAT'S interesting..." Yuna mumbled, watching Ayaka struggle to plug her nose with crumpled up paper, her poise and dignity seemingly lost.

"I wonder what Asuna did last night? She's all...beamy," Makie admitted quietly, a finger to her lips as she thought.

"Er, yeah..." Ako murmured, looking away from the blonde fountain of blood, "Yuna, have you thought anymore about donating some to the nurse's office for new medical supplies, yet?"

Yuna lifted an eyebrow, "If by 'thought about' you mean 'played video games and hired the robotics club to build me a tank', then yes. Yes I have."

"You actually paid them to build you a tank?" The swimmer of the four couldn't help but ask, frowning in worry. Yuna with a tank sounded like a bad idea.

"I sure as heck did! They told me it's gonna be a little slow because Hakase is busy with some big project, but they're working on it, now!"

Ako grimaced, wondering just how busy her job was going to get after Yuna got her hands on a tank.

That was when something else rather strange and unpredicted happened. Asuna squealed really loud. Everyone in the class turned to look at her, then turned to see what had her so excited.

Standing in the doorway was Konoka Konoe, all grins and rainbows. A step behind her was Setsuna Sakurazaki, all...stern and like she usually was. Both were wearing their school uniforms, and both appeared ready for another day at Mahora.

Asuna lunged across the classroom, Konoka diving in herself. The two met in a crashing hug, both talking really fast, as apparently they both had some catching up to do. Setsuna slowly followed her charge in, giving everyone a little smile and tip of the head as hello.

It was at this rather opportune moment that Negi and Evangeline wandered into the classroom, the boy looking rather tired. The vampire quietly went her way to her seat, and Negi walked up to Asuna, looking up at her as she continued to speed talk with Konoka, "I'm sorry I didn't make it back home last night, Asuna-san. Evangeline and I...had a lot to talk about."

"Where's Sayo?" Setsuna asked quietly, looking around for the seemingly not present ghost.

"It's ok, I stayed the night with Takahata-sensei, anyway!" Asuna cheered, her eyes getting all sparkly again.

"WHOA," Ayaka held up her hand for everyone to stop, "So let me get this straight...Asuna and Takahata-sensei stayed the night together, Natsumi and Masayoshi stayed the night together, and now NEGI-SENSEI AND EVANGELINE!? WHAT!?"

"You stayed with Takahata-sensei last night?" Konoka asked, her eyes going all gooey as she prepared to go into gush mode.

Asuna hopped up and down with her returned friend, "I'll tell you all about it, later!"

Nodoka raised her hand, "U-Um, Yue never came back last night, either..."

"I assumed she had finally made a move on you, Negi-sensei," Haruna piped up, "But if you were with Evangeline, then...You know, unless-"

"We were quite alone," Evangeline set that question to rest.

Asuna, giddy as she was, stopped hopping up and down upon hearing Yue had not made it back home. Her once smiling face slipped into a worried grimace.

"I'll bet it's because Eva and Negi-kun are about the same size!" Misa shouted, laughing.

"IS IT!?" Fuuka hopped up onto her desk, which, once again, signaled to everyone that the class was over before it had even officially begun.

This was when another something else rather strange and unpredicted happened. Negi would have none of that disorderliness, and was quick to make it known, "NO! Today you are all going to sit in your chairs, you are going to be quiet, and you are going to pretend to hold a moderate amount of interest in what I am trying to teach you! Now sit!"

At first everyone was about to burst out laughing, and a couple of them still snickered. Then they saw the volatile mix of sleep deprivation and ten-years-old in his eyes, and decided that maybe they should listen.

Asuna and Konoka had yet to move, and Setsuna was still waiting for her charge to take her seat before following suit, "Negi," Asuna whispered, leaning down to him, "Yue had the dream last night, and went out with me to Takahata-sensei's house. She left by herself without an escort, and if she didn't make it back..."

Negi froze up, remembering the call from Takamichi that he hadn't answered.

This was when another other something else rather strange and unpredicted happened. A male's voice broke through the normally girly chatter, coming from the halls, "Hey! I don't even know who that is, you crazy bitch!" A second later, Koremitsu stuck his head into the classroom, looking around until he spotted Ku Fei, "Genji! Come on, let's blow this place like we were paid to do it!"

"What you doing here?" Ku Fei asked, rising from her seat as though she might just follow.

"Well I came here to sweep you off of your feet and take you on a magical journey of romance, adventure, and the making of love. I figured school could wait," The boy grinned, glancing nervously at Makie, hoping she didn't recognize him from earlier.

Half of the class started talking really fast while the other half went 'Ooh!' like the audience to a low budget sitcom that tries to pass off a kiss on the couch as an 'Ooh!' moment. Ku Fei looked at Negi to see if it would be ok for her to leave, "It ok to go, Negi-bozu?"

Of course he certainly couldn't say 'yes, go and take part in the making of love with my blessing'. That wasn't going to fly and he knew it. He, himself, now needed a reason to leave, however, and was raking his mind in an attempt to come up with one.

"Wait, Negi?" Koremitsu asked, now entering the classroom completely, "That wouldn't make you Negi Springfield, would it?"

Negi looked up at the stranger who was now right beside him, "Yes, do you have some business with me?"

"Business with you? Hell no. I don't even know you. But that doesn't mean that psychotically shy groupies of yours don't have 'business' with you," Nodoka blushed at those words as Koremitsu handed Negi a letter, "Not sure what it is, but some nut job girl just slammed this onto my chest, told me to give it to Negi Springfield, and then ran like a suicidal diabetic to cake."

"A love note?" Sakurako suggested loudly, now out of her seat.

"A what, now!?" Ayaka fumed at the thought, watching warily as Negi took the letter from the intrusive boy.

The young teacher ripped the end off of the envelope, pulling out a neatly folded piece of paper and quickly reading the contents;

'_Negi,_

_We haven't seen one another in quite awhile, now, and that is something that we should definitely fix. As incentive to get your compliance, I promise not to do anything worse to Forehead Girl than I already have if you show up within twenty minutes of receiving this message. I'll be waiting for you at Evangeline's old cabin, which was conveniently vacant last night, resort and all. Isn't it great how these things work out? Oh, and bring Sunshine with you, yeah? I miss her. My Fellow Lady Lover would be a welcome sight, too. Nostalgia, how I adore thee.'_

Negi stared at the letter in blind fury for several seconds before crumpling it up, jamming it into his pocket, and declaring, "Today is a free day!"

Everyone jumped up, cheering, and the classroom quickly found itself abandoned, even by Negi himself. The boy made his haste no secret, running through the halls as if the boogie man might be chasing him. The fact was that the only ones chasing him were Asuna, Konoka, Setsuna, and Ku Fei, whom he was more or less dragging. This, of course, cause Koremitsu to chase after them as well, not particularly pleased with some uppity British boy trying to snag his afternoon entertainment.

"What did it say, Negi?" Asuna asked, pumping hard to keep up with her roommate.

The group burst out into the sunlight of the morning, Negi replying as he ran, "They've got Yue-san at Evangeline's cottage. We're gonna go get her back!"

"Why would they set up a hostage situation, though?" Setsuna asked, "It sounds an awful lot like a trap, Negi-sensei."

"The letter did say to bring Ku Fei-san and Setsuna-san...Or at least in nicknames, it did. Negi slowed his running to look around and make sure it was clear enough to hop on his staff and fly, handing Asuna the letter.

She read it as fast as she could decipher the chicken-scratchings, and then looked at Negi in wonder, "This sounds an awful lot like-"

"What I don't understand," Negi interrupted, "Is why they would ask for Setsuna-san when clearly, she isn't here at all. She's still in Kyoto with Konoka-san, and who knows when they'll be back?"

"Um...Negi-sensei?" Setsuna mumbled, "I'm right here. So is Ojou-sama."

"I know you're right there, Setsuna-san," Negi nodded, now sure that the area was clear enough that he could get on his staff, which he did, pulling Ku Fei on with him, "But we're talking about Setsuna-san, not..." The boy paused, turning to stare right at Setsuna's grim face, Konoka waving at him just behind her. He slid off of his staff in surprise, landing rather impressively flat on his face, pulling Ku Fei off, who did the same.

"Genji!" Koremitsu dropped to her side, helping her up, "Is your pretty face alright?"

"Yeah," The blonde nodded, "I alright."

"Good," The boy nodded, "Now introduce me to your lovely friend here," He motioned to Konoka, who smiled brightly at the compliment.

As Ku Fei started to throttle Koremitsu, Negi jumped up and got up in Setsuna's face, "What are you both doing back here? I thought you were training!"

The two girls nodded, Setsuna taking a step back, "It's almost been three weeks since we left, but when Ojou-sama's father had the dream again, the aura again, we knew we had to come back."

Konoka nodded in agreement, "If this is really going to happen again, we want to be here to help protect everyone, too!"

Before Negi could say anything else, Setsuna butted in, "Ojou-sama's really come quite a long ways in the short time we were gone. It turns out that the massive energy within her makes for quite a big boom, on occasion."

Konoka hopped up and down in glee, "Yeah! Watch this, watch this!" She clapped her hands together, and spectacular purple explosion filled the air above them, knocking everyone but herself and Setsuna to the ground with the aftershock, "I can make fireworks!" She laughed, clapping again and again as differently colored explosions rattled the campus, shaking the very ground.

"What were they teaching you, over there!? I thought you were a healer!" Negi shouted, covering her ears to drown out the pervasive noise.

"Oh," Konoka stopped clapping, "I am. I found out the fireworks one on accident."

"Ok!" Asuna shouted, "I thought we had to go and rescue Yue? Why are we having a chummy little talk, now!?"

Ku Fei stopped choking Koremitsu upon hearing this, "Save her from who? What going on?"

"Come on," Negi took her by the hand and pulled her onto his staff, "I'll explain on the way."

Koremitsu climbed onto the back of the staff after Ku Fei, "Me too!"

Asuna kicked him in the side hard enough to break down a door, sending him over the edge of the staff and to the ground, "Get off, loverboy! Negi, go!" The redhead commanded once she was planted firmly on.

Negi glanced at his two students over his shoulder, "You'll be coming, then?"

"Right behind you," Setsuna replied with a nod.

The young teacher then kicked off, not even caring that the boy was watching. He wasn't a concern, right now, not when Yue was in danger.

Koremitsu rose to his feet, brushing the shoe print off of his shirt and muttering, "Built for soccer, that one," He then turned his attention to the two girls he was left with, the pigtailed one scooping the other one up and starting a remarkable dash off towards the distant forest. He was quick to follow.

It didn't take Setsuna longer than a second to realize the boy was following them, and it took her even less time to formulate a question, "What do you want?"

"Well I certainly can't let you send my Genji off into a hostage situation without me being there, now can I?" The boy replied casually, keeping up with Setsuna rather well, she had to admit, "Besides, I take it this Yue is a girl?"

"She is!" Konoka exclaimed from her guardian's arms.

"Right, well, saving girls is a good way to spend a morning, I think. With two such beautiful escorts, I'd be a fool not to follow."

Konoka giggled, much like she usually does, stating bluntly, "You're a cutie!"

"O-Ojou-sama! Don't encourage his type!"

"My type?" Koremitsu asked with a grin, "Is it so bad that I think you are both attractive young ladies? Though, I will admit, I do find you to be particularly ravishing," He smiled broadly at Konoka, who was all too happy to bask in the love light being shone upon her.

"Ooh, I like him, Set-chan! He's fun!"

"Ojou-samaaaaaa..."

-

The three travelers climbed off of the staff, Ku Fei bewildered by what was just revealed to her. It wouldn't be a stretch to say she was scared, but it would be an incredible lie to say she was going to hide from it. This seeming return, and this assault on her friends, was something that was going to be dealt with sternly. Cracking her knuckles as she approached the dilapidated building, she was ready to bring the hurt.

Asuna and Negi were of much the same mind set, and they were just a step behind their blonde friend. That letter had left a lot to be desired as far as the safety of their short friend. Asuna turned when she heard footsteps coming from behind them, relieved to find Setsuna and Konoka, tailed by the boy. Within a few seconds they were all in front of the door, ready to take care of business.

Negi threw the door open, only taking a split second to look inside before rushing in. He stopped after only taking three steps in, everyone else spilling in behind him. Yue was tied up on a chair in the middle of the living room, which had been cleared by pushing all furniture to the walls. She appeared to be unconscious, and had a couple of bruises, but looked alright, otherwise. What had caused him to stop was the man standing beside her, smiling at them like he had just won the lottery.

"Oh, crap!" Konoka gasped, staring in wonder.

Connor Gavet looked from one face to the next until he had gotten a good look at each one, grinning the whole time through, "Did you miss me?"

Koremitsu looked from Ku Fei's inexplicably confused face to Negi's betrayed and horrified one, "This is an 'uh oh' moment, isn't it?"

_-----Author's other note: Oh yeah. Cliffhanger. Rock on. Thanks for reading...-----_


	16. The Coming Storm Pt 1

_-----Author's note: I do not own Negima, but any other characters and ideas are my own. I am also not making any profit off of this, so...Wait. I'm not making any profit!? Ok, that's it. Screw you guys, I am going home. Turns to leave but is stopped by Eternal-Longing who has incriminating photo evidence that Serac is wary of I mean...Enjoy...-----_

The silence in that room was so dominant that one could swear to being able to hear it. A draft was coming down from the stairs through the gaping hole made during the attack on Evangeline. Yue, the only unconscious person in the cottage, was just as active as everyone else, who were simply staring in bewilderment at who her captor appeared to be.

"This had better be a misunderstanding," Negi managed to growl once staring fell out of favor.

Connor looked down at Yue, then back at Negi, "Well, I've got a girl, some ropes, and a chair. If my pants were off this could be misunderstood as a Friday night, but I'm still dressed, and it's not nighttime, which leaves a less favorable conclusion."

"Oh, then unless you're having Morning O's, we're about to have a problem, man," Koremitsu shook his head a little bit, his eyes moving from the bruises on the captive to the man in possession of said captive.

Connor stared at Koremitsu for a second, then his eyes went wide and he leaned back in surprise, "What are YOU doing here?"

"What? That's all I get!?" The boy asked, frowning, "All those nights in your arms, and that's all I get?"

"You know each other?" Setsuna asked, her eyes not leaving her bound classmate.

"'Know' is such a strong word..." Koremitsu cleared his throat a little.

"I don't remember asking you to bring the entire peanut gallery, kid," Connor continued to survey the small group of people, "The three stragglers can go."

"None of us are going anywhere without Yue-san," Negi stated defiantly, bringing his staff up in his fighting stance.

Asuna was quick to step between her battle ready teacher and the traitorous one, asking, "What do you want with Setsuna and Ku Fei?"

"What I want with them is WAY different than what the group wants with them, my idiotic red friend," Connor set his hand on Yue's head and used her to lean on, pushing her already slumped head down further, "The group wants me to have a talk with sword girl and the boy wonder, and I just wanted to see Sunshine, again. The rest of you are baggage."

"And when you say group," Negi spoke, "You mean the Angels?"

Laughing, Connor replied, "No, Negi, I'm talking about the Boy Scouts. Of course I mean the Angels!"

"Did you do that to Yue?" Asuna fumed, clearly speaking of the bruises.

"I didn't take forehead girl into that resort for a twenty-four hour love-fest, and interrogating is a lot more fun with blunt objects, so..."

Ku Fei lunged at Connor, ready to tear his head off, ram her fist down his neck, and pull out his still beating black heart. Koremitsu grabbed Setsuna by the shirt as she tried to dash after, and brought up his other hand to backhand Negi in the face as he attempted to utter a spell, knocking the boy over onto his butt.

Ku Fei swung her open palm at Connor, who smacked it aside with the hand that wasn't propping him up on Yue. He quickly got off of the girl, as he needed both hands to keep up with his Chinese assailant, who was swinging at him more like an angry animal than a trained martial artist. Catching her by the wrist, he spun behind her, pulling her arm up behind her head until he heard a pop and a yelp, then wrapped his leg around hers and pushed forward, dropping her to her knees.

"Now, Sunshine," Connor started, stopping just as quickly when she started to struggle, slamming her face first down onto the wooden floor, "I don't want to be any rougher with you than is enjoyable, so why don't you be a sweetheart and keep the outbursts to a minimum, alright?"

"Let go!" Setsuna shouted, spinning and taking a swing at Koremitsu, who did indeed let go.

He stumbled aside a step as Konoka pushed him, "What's wrong with you!?"

"He said he wants to talk! You're all too angry and involved to make a sound decision, and look at where it got Genji!" He motioned to the pinned blonde with a dislocated arm and tears welling in her eyes, "Let's hear what he has to say, first, before we try and kill each other."

Negi stood up, rubbing his nose as he shot Koremitsu an angry look that went mostly unnoticed.

Connor set his boot on Ku Fei's back, pushing hard to shove her across the floor and back to where she had been, "You always were a good talker for a kid, J-"

"It's been two years," The boy interrupted, "And it's Koremitsu."

Connor grinned, nodding, "Fair enough. Now, get out of here."

"Not until y-"

Setsuna raised a hand to silence Konoka, "It's alright, Ojou-sama. Go wait outside."

Koremitsu knelt down beside Ku Fei, trying to help her up, but was quickly shoved off, "Why you doing this to us!?" The girl cried, hurt eyes boring holes through Connor's soul, "What happen to you!?"

Looking away with a little shrug, Connor continued to wait for the unwanted and unneeded guests to give them time alone.

"Come on, Genji," Koremitsu grabbed the blonde, who was struggling plenty and on the verge of tears.

"But Set-chan..." Konoka mumbled, confused.

"You trust my judgement, don't you, Ojou-sama?"

"Well, of course I do, but..."

"Then wait outside with Asuna-san and the others. We won't be too long."

Asuna looked at Negi for some sort of direction, and he gave her the go ahead by motioning to the door, "Keep an eye out in case it's a trap," The boy requested solemnly.

"Be careful, Negi..." She said quietly, not following Koremitsu until she had shot a thoroughly disgusted look in Connor's direction. Konoka looked at her two friends sadly before doing the same.

Koremitsu groaned a little as he did his best to restrain a livid and emotionally tapped Ku Fei, getting a jab to the side and more than one knee to the stomach as he fought the good fight, "Genji! Stop it! I'm not the bad guy, here!"

A well placed knee just a tad below the belt sent the boy down the steps, Ku Fei along with him. She scrambled out of his grasp, moving for the door to get back into the cottage, but Asuna caught her this time, continuing the battle to keep her outside.

"Let me go!" She yelled, "I not finished with him! Let me go!"

Asuna stumbled under her friend's furious efforts, falling down the steps much like the boy had, though she managed to keep a solid grip on the girl.

"Ku Fei, stop it! Negi said to wait out here, and that's what we're gonna..."

"I don't care! I not finished with him, yet! Let go!"

"That's not Connor!" Koremitsu shouted, now risen to a knee, though he didn't seem capable of much more, just yet, "That's not Connor, it isn't, so just reign it in, Genji. ...Whoo, I think I'm gonna throw up."

Ku Fei ceased her fighting. Laying motionless on the ground with Asuna, she asked, "How you know that? How you know him?"

"Are you kidding me?" Koremitsu asked with a grin, though he was rather pale from that last knee, "That guy's like a brother to me, there's no way that's him..."

"You said you hadn't seen him in two years, though..." Konoka pointed out, walking over to the winded and severely wounded male to patch him up with a little magic.

"That may be true, but there's no way he'd do what I just saw him do, especially not to a pretty girl. He couldn't have changed that much, trust me...And I should have gotten a much better welcome. I'm talking tears and hugs, ladies, tears and hugs..." Koremitsu allowed Konoka to lay him down flat on his back, letting out a huge sigh of relief as she let out a soft glow from her hands over his...injured area.

"If that's not Connor, then who is it?" Asuna asked, still clinging to Ku Fei, just in case.

"Can you hold on a second?" The boy mumbled, "It's not every day a guy gets pleasured with magic, so you'll have to excuse me..."

Konoka flushed a deep red, immediately stopping the spell and hopping back.

"Aw, princess," The now healed Koremitsu sprung wryly to his feet, "Was it good for you, too?"

"Who is it, then?" Asuna pressed the question.

"Damned if I know, woman. I know who it isn't, though, and that should be enough."

"How you know him? Tell us! Who are you?" Ku Fei demanded, starting to believe that him searching her out wasn't for any sort of fight to test his strength, or anything like that, at all.

Koremitsu nodded a little bit to himself, strolling over to the wooden steps and sitting down on the second one, "It's not the most exciting of stories, but while they're in there talking it up, I guess we've nothing better to do, right?" He figured keeping Ku Fei preoccupied was the best move he could make, right then.

Asuna, though she was a little nervous about letting the blonde girl go, did so, grimacing as she quickly popped her shoulder back into its socket, sitting beside her friend. Konoka took his other side, and Asuna sat next to her, and they went into listen mode.

It took Koremitsu a few seconds to figure out how he should start, but once he did, he didn't stop, "Do you recognize the name Serac?" A quick 'no' from all three persuaded him to continue, "Then I hope you ladies are ready for a stereotypical poor me sob story of a childhood, because that's how this story gets rolling."

"My parents never really got along all that well, and it wouldn't be true to say they were strangers to the drink. As most television shows and every Dr. Phil would tell you, that doesn't make for a happy household. Having a kid sounds like the perfect fuse for this abuse time bomb, doesn't it? Well strike a match, light me up, and call me perfect."

"It worked for a little while. Having a kid was something different, and the wondrous flames of passion were lit anew. I guess having a kid really makes you feel like you're in a family, I don't know. Anyway, it didn't last. By the time I was nine, they were both getting plastered and getting into fights on a regular basis. Every now and then he'd hit her, she'd threaten to leave, I'd sit in my room, hide under the blankets, and hope they'd forget about me until the next morning," Koremitsu said all of this very casually, shrugging a little, like it wasn't really that important, "Sometimes I'd luck out and they'd leave me alone. Other times, well...Ha, I guess a little childhood trauma builds character, right?"

He felt a little squeeze on his left arm, glancing through the corner of his eye to see a teary-eyed Konoka on the verge of giving him a bear hug and promising him it would be ok. He held back the grin at her concern, instead turning it into a reassuring smile before continuing.

"Well, when I was ten I couldn't do it anymore. They kept going to the bottle like there was some magical solution to their problems hiding at the bottom, just waiting for them to drink it free. All that ever came out of those things was the same damn poison that sucked them into fights they could never win. Naturally, being ten-years-old, I assumed they were staying together for my sake, and that if I left, well, they could split up and everyone could live happily ever after. My aunt said that wasn't true, and that they had been this way since before I was born, but she was still plenty happy to send a little pocket change my way to help me get out of there."

"So I did. One night when they were busy fighting, I slipped out my window and ran. I'd never felt so good in my life. So liberated. It was great. I used the money my aunt had given me to take a carriage to the next town, where a ship bound for Kuijin was waiting for me. I wasn't old enough to go sailing off to island communities by myself, so I played the part of the stowaway. Luckily enough for me, my parents had taught me how to hide pretty well."

"So I sailed to the island, and met a girl. I know, isn't it beautiful? She took me to the monastery where she lived and worked, and lo and behold, I had a new home. The monks in the monastery were...weird, to say the least. I learned a lot from them, though, and the teachings they pushed on me reinforced what my dad had already taught me never to do; hit a girl."

"That why you fight so bad against me!?" Ku Fei asked loudly, quickly covering her mouth as though it would undo her interruption.

"Yeah," Koremitsu laughed, "Fighting girls isn't really my thing. I'd rather make love than bring the pain, but circumstances don't always allow. I soon found out that the little group of people that had taken me in were less monks than they were guardians. They trained with swords every day, and studied the old Yuden scriptures every night. They protected the people, sought enlightenment in their studies, and worked hard every day. I didn't really want to be there, but a cute girl paired with me having no other alternative places to go kind of kept me in one spot. I trained with them, studied with them, and became a guardian, too."

"About a year later, the government decided that they didn't like what was in the scriptures, and attempted to confiscate and burn all of them. It's not like they were just picking on Yuden or anything, when you have a moral supremacist dictator in charge, you either fall in line or get beat into it. Lots of other places of study went under attack, as well. We refused to give up the scriptures, and they proceeded to destroy my life. I was eleven, at this point, and I was being deported back to the homeland. Once we hit shore, I nicked the keys from my guard, lost my chains, and ran as fast as I could."

"What happened to the girl?" Konoka asked, eyes all big and watery, much to Koremitsu's amusement, though the question prevented him from smiling about it.

"Well, she didn't make it out of the purification process intact. I heard she died a couple of days later in a holding cell, but I never saw her after the monastery went down. That's not really important, though..." He trailed off when Konoka finally did throw her arms around him, saying something about how she was so sad for him and that she was sorry things had been so bad.

He looked to Asuna for a little help, but the pigtailed girl, with little tears in the corner of her eyes, said, "That IS pretty sad..."

Ku Fei, whose chin was quivering a little, didn't look like she was going to be of much help, either, so Koremitsu simply patted Konoka on the back, "Don't worry, princess, everything turned out ok. I got away from the guards, and hopped a carriage ride over to the next town, where I spent the best time of my life. I made my best friends there, and found a place that really was home."

"Did you meet Connor there?" Konoka asked quietly, easing off of the boy, who nodded.

"Yeah, but he didn't show up until a year or so later, so he was the new guy, not me. Actually, he didn't so much 'show up' as much as he was dragged in by one Serac. ...You sure none of you ladies are familiar?"

All three shook their heads.

"Well, I guess that part isn't all that important, then. Anyway, hit the generical fantasy game music because Connor had no idea who he was, where he was from, or where he was. He was basically a blank sheet of paper, and I was a kid with a new set of crayons. I spent the next year of my life incorporating Connor into my group of friends, teaching him how to treat women, how to fight, and basically molding him into my shape."

"Wait," Ku Fei interrupted, "So Connor act like you, not you act like Connor?"

"Pretty much, yeah. He got the whole nickname thing from me, of course, which is why I figured out after letting it slip ONCE that Sunshine was not a name I should use for you, likely because he already used it..."

"He get that name from you!?"

The boy was rather unsettled by the odd red color Ku Fei's face had just gone, but being who he was, he simply went on truthfully, "Well, yeah, I had a girl I called Sunshine..."

The Chinese girl swung her balled up fists down beside her, cracking the wood, "Ooh!" She squealed angrily.

"But I can't take all the credit..." Koremitsu continued, ignoring the steam pouring from Ku Fei's ears, "He went on and made friends of his own, and he developed his own personality, too, much to my dismay. I had lost my chance at a perfect clone. A year went by, I turned thirteen, and Connor was just as much a part of the community as me or anyone else. Then...some stuff happened, some people died, and things were different. Not much later, Connor left, and we never saw him again. Well, not counting captain fakes-a-lot in there," He thrust a thumb over his shoulder to indicate the Connor he claimed was a fake inside the cottage.

"What stuff happen? Who die?" Ku Fei asked.

"That's not really my place to say, Genji. I figure he'll tell you if he wants you to know."

"You said that you knew not to call Ku Fei Sunshine because Connor probably already did..." Asuna mumbled, rubbing her head in confusion, "Did that mean you already knew he had been here, then?"

"A friend had told me that Connor had been here, yes."

"Why you come see me? Why now?"

Koremitsu looked at Ku Fei with an uncharacteristically solemn look, replying, "We'll call it Fate, and that's enough."

Koremitsu stood up, stretching his hands up over his head, "Yeah, sorry about that. I told you it was boring and all, but I didn't mean to be so long-winded about it. It would have been quicker if you guys knew who Serac was, I guess, but whatever. It doesn't matter."

"Negi said that Connor was from some alternate dimension, or something!" Asuna stated loudly, not sure if her brain was about to crap out on her, or if she was experiencing some new form of vicious migraine, "Does that mean you are, too?"

"Well..." Koremitsu spun to look at Asuna, Ku Fei, and Konoka, rubbing his chin thoughtfully, "I suppose it does mean that."

"...So you a alien?" Ku Fei wondered aloud.

"...Does that turn you on?"

"No!"

"Then no."

A sudden gust of wind paired with three surprised looks on three pretty girl's faces told Koremitsu something bad had just happened. The odd clicking sound coming from behind him didn't tell him otherwise, either. He slowly turned to find a white robed man a few feet behind him, arm raised.

Konoka's eyes went from the gun the man was aiming at Koremitsu to the clear intent to kill in his eyes, and leapt to her feet.

"What the hell is that thing?" The boy asked, eyeing the gun in confusion.

"A gift from our Mother," The man replied lowly, pulling the trigger, setting off a bang.

Before he could ask if the man had a receipt to go along with it, Koremitsu and Konoka went to the ground in a heap. Asuna rushed forward, her sword now in hand, "Konoka!"

Ku Fei charged with her hasty friend, sparing no glance at the two on the ground until there was time to allow.

Koremitsu raised his head from the ground, looking at the girl right in front of him, "Princess, what the hell?" After waiting a second and getting no reply, he gave her a little nudge, "Princess?" Still nothing. That's when he saw the flow of blood meandering away from Konoka's still form, his eyes going wide, "Konoka, are you alright!?" He yelped, sliding to his knees and pulling the bleeding girl up onto his lap to find the wound, ignoring the sounds of similar shots being fired close by as the fight went on.

The front of her uniform was soaked in blood, a tear apparent in the chest region. She was conscious, but looked like she was about to go into shock. Wide-eyed and breathing hard, she stared at Koremitsu for a second that felt like it lasted several hours before saying, "I-I'm h-hurt..."

Tears immediately spilt from her eyes, running down her cheeks as she spoke, her own voice scaring her worse than the blood she could feel pooling beside her. She sounded like she was sobbing, those two words taking a monumental effort to squeak out.

"We're ok, you're ok, it's ok!" Koremitsu reached down and, with a few solid tugs, tore her shirt in half, starting from the tear made by the projectile. He paled when he saw the hole in her chest, above her right breast, which was leaking blood frighteningly fast. Stilling his own panic, he pulled his own shirt off, using it to staunch the blood flow as best he could.

"I-I'm s-s...I'm s-scared..." She gasped as Koremitsu set her hand on the shirt.

"You'll be ok, it's not as bad as it feels," He lied, "Now j-just hold this on here, I'll-"

The boy tried to jump up and leave for help, but Konoka caught him weakly by the hand, her voice cracking when she pled, "P-Please don't leave m-me!"

He fell back to her side, holding her hand tight and pressing the shirt over the wound as he gave a shaky nod, "You're gonna be ok...I promise. Look at me," He lowered his forehead to hers as both his hands were preoccupied and her head had started to loll to the side, "We're gonna fix this. You're gonna get through this..."

-

"Be careful, Negi..." Asuna said quietly, not following Koremitsu until she had shot a thoroughly disgusted look in Connor's direction. Konoka looked at her two friends sadly before doing the same.

"Well then..." Connor mumbled once he was alone with Negi and Setsuna, "Guess it's time we had ourselves a little chat."

_-----Other author's note: Oh, the chapter ended at a most inopportune time. Even I know this cliffie sucks. Well, thanks for reading...-----_


	17. The Coming Storm Pt 2

_-----Author's note: I do not own Negima, but any other characters and ideas are my own. Enjoy...-----_

Negi Springfield. Boy prodigy, up and coming mage, English teacher, and the apple of many a girl's eye. Another thing that he was, which is to be noted, was that he was very protective of the people he cared for. Also to be noted was the fact that Connor knew this about his small friend very well, and as such was doing his best to play on it.

Kicking the chair in which Yue Ayase was tied so that it completed a 180, Connor swung a leg over and straddled the girl, setting his arms on her head, resting his chin on his arms. He sent the cross duo of Negi and Setsuna a big grin as he spoke, "Before we get into the nitty-gritty of this whole mess, I just want to say what a delight it is to see you two, again."

"It's a one way street, I assure you," The guardian growled lowly.

"Get off of her!" Negi barked angrily.

"Or what? You're gonna throw some magic my way? Please. Not with me sitting on her," He moved enough that he could plant a kiss on the top of her head, "As far as shields go, I could have done a lot worse."

"Is that why she's here? Because you need a human shield?" The young instructor asked, still gripping his staff at his side.

Connor shrugged, "No, that's just a bonus. She's here because: A. She's close to you, and she's been marked, so it's totally alright for me to kill her if you get belligerent, B. You were too busy playing sweethearts with everyone's favorite bloodsucking bimbo to walk her home, giving me the opening I needed with no one around to pick her up, and, C. We needed to have a good long talk about what Shizuna and Takahata had gone on about before she cut out. Luckily for me, forehead girl here had just had a relative talk with him, so it was just a matter of getting her to speak up," As he stated the last reason, he patted Yue on the head with a hint of aggravation ghosting his face.

Catching this, Setsuna smirked, "She didn't tell you a thing, did she?"

"Twenty-four hours is a mighty long time, Ani, and I'll assure you she sung like a bird after the second round of antipsychotics," Connor took a hold of one of Yue's arms, pulling it out and shifting the chair a little to show the needle marks, which nearly caused Negi's mind to blank out with rage, "Dysphoria proved to be a good friend. You know, for the parts where she was keeping it together."

"How long did you-"

"Only until she started hearing things and I got tired of hearing her crying. I'll tell you, pump some chemicals into someone and-"

Connor's sentence was cut short when Negi had heard more than enough, and rushed his direction. Setsuna growled as she dashed in as well. She knew they could take Connor, especially together, but he was way too close to Yue right now, and she couldn't guarantee the safety of her classmate. Negi, who was normally more careful when it concerned his students, couldn't just stand there anymore. Connor needed to die, and he had never been more ready to fight than right then.

Connor spun off of Yue, kicking her chair so that it slid back into the wall behind him. He spun a second time, dipping his hand into his coat as he swung his boot up to deflect Negi's staff, then raising his hand out to his side to catch Setsuna's blade, a metallic clang sounding. Her sharp eyes catching the pen her former teacher held in his hand, Setsuna spun with him as he continued to twirl, their backs touching as they switched positions. The boy, taking advantage of his enemy's being preoccupied, began to chant a spell.

The man in black swung his pen once his spin was nearly finished, Setsuna dropping low in a sweeping kick to dodge. Her leg connected with Connor's heels, knocking his legs out from underneath him. He rolled to the side as Setsuna's blade plunged into the floor where his head had been a split second ago. Negi finished his incantation, letting loose a flurry of shimmering arrows in Connor's direction.

Pulling up to a knee after his narrow escape, Connor threw a palm forward, countering the attack with a hurricane of shadows that ripped through the room, flinging both Negi and Setsuna away from him and back into the wall. The magic vanished just as soon as it appeared, and Setsuna was at the ready just as fast, Negi clamoring to his feet beside her. Neither was too pleased to find Connor at the back wall with Yue, pen in hand, placed under her chin and poised to strike.

"Now," The man sighed, "Do you want to try that again? Because she means about as much to me as what I ate for breakfast yesterday."

Swallowing as much of his frustration and panic as he could, Negi asked, "How do we know you won't just do it after we talk?"

"Because it isn't my job to kill her. It's just to talk to you, give the girl back, and then be on my merry way. Simple, right?"

"So talk, then," Setsuna commanded, sword still at the ready.

"Why thank you for the go ahead, Lucy! How about you put the weapon away before you hurt yourself?" Connor suggested politely, nodding at the sword. When she made no such move, the man in black pressed his pen a bit harder into Yue's throat, "Let me to rephrase that: How about you put the weapon away before I hurt her?"

With a snarl, Setsuna slid her weapon into its sheath, and Negi set his staff in its place on his back.

"Well would you look at that. Progress. Now, there are a couple of things I need to tell the two of you..." The man's eyes went from one to the other as he spoke, "The first being that you, kid," He nodded at Negi, "Have been chosen."

"Chosen for what?"

"To live, most notably. You won't be having the dream this time around."

"But why? I helped to kill her!" Negi exclaimed, confused.

"That you did. Little did we know at the time, we were doing exactly as she wanted us to. By killing her, we basically set the last phase of her plan into motion. That's not quite the reason, but it'll do, for now. In three days it will be exactly three weeks since the night we killed her. In three days, she will return, perfect, and ready to fulfill her dream of a glorious new world. In three days, it'll be Armageddon."

"Why in three more days? What's so special about three weeks?" Setsuna asked.

Connor shrugged, "At first I thought it was because twenty-one was the best you could get in blackjack, but no, that's just me. They drew some sort of comparison to Jesus again. He was down there for three days after his crucifixion to redeem our sins, etc. etc., but the Mother is staying there three days for each big sin. ...I think. You know, three days for the lustful, three days for the prideful, blah, blah, blah. It's funny, though. Go and check Sunshine's calendar. I had the day marked before I even knew about this."

"Marked for what?"

"Something I knew was going to happen, and was powerless to stop."

"It hasn't even happened, yet," Setsuna pointed out, "And you're already talking like it has!"

Connor sat himself back down on Yue's lap, finally moving his pen from her throat, "Because I know it's going to happen. Just caught up on the news, and it's all happening like I was told it would. It's kind of depressing, really. I marked the calendar out of guilt, anyway."

Negi tried to say something, but Connor cut him off, "That's not important, though, because it's already set to happen. That train's left the station. Now I've got to tell you about...Ha, ha..." He paused to rub the side of his head, squinting a little, "Headache. I've got to tell you about the vessel. The reason the Mother took a physical form was specifically so that we could kill her, and that she could go to hell to 'redeem' us. That was the plan from the get go: To die a human death."

Setsuna noticed the slightly different tone Connor had taken on, and that he was starting to look a little pale, though she said nothing.

"When she comes back, she'll be reborn into the 'holy vessel', a body chosen for her since before any of this. It's one of those predestined bullshit things. I know it's a girl, and I believe she has some sort of sign, or tell, of what's coming to her. Also...Ha, ha, ha..." He once again started to rub the side of his head, grimacing a little even though he was laughing, "You can stop the whole thing from happening if you just kill the host before the resurrection..."

"You're not Connor-sensei, are you?" Setsuna asked, eyeing the man as he continued to snicker to himself and take on an unpleasant greenish color, suggesting he might soon vomit.

The increasingly sick looking man raised his hand, snapping his fingers. A flash of smoke accompanied by an odd popping noise enveloped Connor, who was still perched on top of Yue. The veil quickly dispersed to reveal a different person on student number four. A very different person.

"Oops, got a little too into character, that time..."

Setsuna's eyes scanned the new form, which she was quick to label as the form of a woman. A very womanly woman. Negi was inspecting the enemy, as well, noting her green robe that was an identical match to that of the copycat's he had defeated back at Library Island. She didn't appear to have a weapon of any kind, but it wasn't inconceivable to think she might have one stashed in the bulky robe. Her flaming red hair was folded up into a bun, only a few loose strands of hair grazing her neck and face.

"So you weren't him, after all," Negi let out a small sigh of relief, glad Connor hadn't sunken so low as to torture his old friends. The boy, once his sigh was completed, flinched away at the look the woman was giving him. He'd never seen such a look on anyone ever before. Hate, curiosity, fear, sadness, desperation. He wished she could just settle on a single emotion, but he was reading far more than that in her eyes.

Before he had the opportunity to ask her about it, the woman replied to his comment, "No, just Akane the doppelganger, at your service, Negi-chan! Go ahead and ignore that last thing I said..."

"But is it true? If we destroy the vessel, the Mother won't be reborn into it?" The boy prodigy asked earnestly.

Akane raised an eyebrow, "Is that how we're going to look at it, Negi-chan?" Negi was quiet for a moment, so the woman continued, "Is the vessel just a thing to you? A nameless 'it' that you can 'destroy'? If you call her a vessel, and say destroy instead of kill, will that make it easier for you to do it?"

Negi gritted his teeth, clenching his fists a little.

"Ask yourself this, Negi-chan," Akane spoke now through a frown, her pleasant voice dropping a tone down to low, "Are you a cold person capable of killing an innocent girl, or a heartless person ready to destroy a container?" The room was quiet for several seconds as Negi realized she might be right. Was he the kind of person who could look at people as things, as statistics? Could he really kill an innocent girl to save everyone else? Akane was right. It did make it easier to try and think of the vessel as a mere thing, and not a human, but he didn't want to be that kind of a person. How would he live with himself if he could write people off as things when it was convenient? "So you see," The red-headed girl broke the silence, "It really doesn't matter if it's true or not, because you wouldn't kill her even if you had the chance."

Setsuna opened her mouth to speak, but the doppelganger was quick to cut her off, "And neither would you. You're harder inside than Negi-chan, but in the end, you're going to make the right decision. If given the opportunity, you wouldn't kill the vessel, either."

"And how do you figure that?" Setsuna snarled, not enjoying Akane much more than she had just enjoyed the fake Connor.

"You understand what the point is behind the dream, do you not?" After getting the nod from Setsuna, the copycat continued, "So, then, you must surely understand why you haven't had it, correct?" A quiet glare from the guardian suggested that she had an inkling, "You haven't had the dream because you have been chosen to live in the perfect world."

"It hardly seems perfect to me. What about the near genocide of the world could possibly be perfect?"

"It isn't the fight for the greater good that is perfect, it's the greater good achieved that is. One of the girls outside this very cottage is very close to you, closer than anyone else. She, also, has been chosen to live in our Mother's paradise. Could you imagine living in a world with her, with no pain, no danger, no fear? You are her protector, are you not? In our Mother's world, she wouldn't need you to protect her, anymore. She would be safe. Are you afraid that if you don't need to protect her, that she wouldn't need you anymore?"

"Of course not!"

"Then why deny her a wonderful life of peace and happiness?"

Averting her gaze away from the redhead's, Setsuna replied, "Even if you say that, that just isn't how it is. Ojou-sama would never want to sacrifice her friends for herself, or for anything else. She is a kind and caring person, and she couldn't be happy knowing what she had lost to get your new world. As far as keeping her safe, I will always watch over and protect Ojou-sama. Always."

Akane smiled, nodding just slightly, "Your devotion is nice, and you mean well, which is also good. We'll see how strongly you feel about your abilities as a guardian soon enough."

Negi and Setsuna's faces darkened, "Is that a threat?" They asked.

"Surely it isn't! I wouldn't dare touch one of the chosen! I was simply saying that I wouldn't be terribly surprised if you changed your mind before three days had run their course. The both of you should know that there are three in this scheme that do not belong, and three that are to be eliminated," Akane stated bluntly, brushing a strand of hair from her face, "An exorcist..."

-

Masayoshi Hitodama hurried after his girlfriend, tugged along by a surprisingly strong grip from such a small specimen.

"Masa-kun! Look at this! You would look so cute in this!" Natsumi pointed out the outfit in the shop's window, causing the boy to rub the back of his neck as he forced a laugh at the dorky looking clothes.

-

"A runaway..."

-

Koremitsu helped keep Konoka's hand steady as the girl continued to cry and bleed out, talking her through the process of closing her own wound. She had stoically choked down her screams and pain as he dug the piece of metal from her wound, and though the tears were pouring down her face and into her hair, he couldn't help but smile as she finished, kissing her forehead and praising her.

-

"And a loner..."

-

Connor Gavet sat alone in a dark room, face in his hands. At least, he thought he was alone.

"It'll be ok," The quiet voice of the girl now beside him whispered.

With a weak nod, Connor set his hand on her head, and she settled in beside him.

-

"Why tell us this?" Negi asked, not sure who any of those people were.

Akane tipped her head to Setsuna, "Because she is going to kill one of them." Before Setsuna could defiantly say that she would most certainly not, Akane had turned her attention back to Negi, "So, tell me, Negi-chan..." The redhead patted Yue on the head, "Do you love her?"

The look was back. The one filled with hate and sadness. Negi could see it flush back onto her face like a sickening sludge film coating a once attractive pond. Hell, he could practically feel the room drop in temperature.

"I don't see what that has to do with anything," The boy replied coolly.

"Oh, it has to do with something, and it's rather important, so I would suggest you answer truthfully, Negi-chan."

Setsuna glanced down at her teacher through the corner of her eye, wondering at the odd look on his face. It wasn't embarrassment or surprise, not even fear.

Negi guessed what was going on, and it made his chest feel tight, as though his heart might drop down into his stomach at any moment. To test what he feared, he opened his mouth and replied, "I love her," Akane's right hand instinctively moved for her left sleeve, telling him she was indeed armed after all, "But I'm not in love with her," Negi finished, his conscience aching.

Akane's movement ceased just as quickly as it had begun, and she crawled off of Yue, pushing the chair across the floor with a mighty shove. Putting a hand on her hip as she raised the other, the woman repeated, "Three days, Negi-chan. Be sure to spend them with the one you do love." A snap of her fingers, and Akane vanished.

Negi untied Yue, checking her vitals and listening for breathing. She seemed ok, she just needed rest, he was horribly relieved to discover.

After checking her classmate to her liking, Setsuna asked quietly, "What was that last part about?"

"Setsuna-san," Negi replied equally quietly, "I think I killed the person she loved."

-

Koremitsu brought his lips up from Konoka's forehead, giving her the most sincere smile he had conjured up in a long time, "Damn, Princess, you're good." Though pale, sore, and very exhausted, Konoka smiled back, and that let him know she was going to be alright.

Asuna slid over to them, plunging her huge sword into the ground as she did, "Konoka, are you alright?" She gasped, her face about half an inch away from her friend's.

Konoka nodded, her forehead bumping Asuna's, "I'm ok..."

So wrapped up in hugging her old roommate, Asuna hardly even registered Koremitsu standing up, spinning around, and jerking her sword out of the ground as he stalked by.

He could see the man tied up to a tree by some sort of large yellow sash he assumed Ku Fei had been carrying. The man was beaten a bit, bruises and cuts apparent on his skin and clothing respectively. A portion of his once pure white robe was stained red from a gash dealt by the redhead student. Ku Fei appeared to be speaking with the man, anger written all over her face.

"YOU!" Koremitsu shouted as he drew nearer, swinging the sword up to point at the incapacitated man, "PRAY!"

The defeated gunman grinned a little, "You're not gonna do a thing to me, little man."

"LAST CHANCE!" The rapidly approaching youth declared, positioning the blade by his left hip without slowing his pace.

Ku Fei got in front of him, "Wait, he maybe help us!"

Koremitsu shouldered the girl out of his way, then spun once to gain momentum a few feet from the gunman, swinging Asuna's blade in a wide semi-circle.

Ku Fei screamed, covering her eyes and looking away, a heavy thunk and the sharp smell of blood the only thing her senses could pick up.

After cleaving the robed man clean in half, and digging the blade halfway through the tree, Koremitsu released the weapon's handle as the severed torso flipped over him. He fell to a knee and crossed himself for the fallen gunman while the scarlet shower quickly subsided, but not before splattering him with a blotchy layer of red. "Looks like he won't be helping anyone, now," He muttered, jerking the blade free, rising to his feet, and skulking past the still cringing Chinese girl, who couldn't bring herself to uncover her face.

"Ooh, I like this one!"

Ku Fei parted her fingers and opened her eyes just enough to see Evangeline leaving the forest, admiring Koremitsu's handiwork.

"It's been a long time since I've seen such exquisite brutality!"

"H-He..." Ku Fei saw the blood spatters on the tree, and made sure to keep her eyes away from anything more.

"I am so turned on right now!" Evangeline grinned evilly, following after the intriguing boy.

"OJOU-SAMA!" Setsuna cried out as she spotted her charge on the ground, surrounded by blood. In less time than it takes for a rock to sit there motionlessly, the guardian was by her side, holding her up in a sitting position and scanning her, asking if she was alright.

"It's ok, Set-chan, I'm ok. Kore-kun helped me..." The girl assured her worried friend.

"Who did this to you? Where are they? I'll kill them!" Setsuna gasped, tears forming in the corners of her eyes.

"Already taken care of," Koremitsu groaned, jamming Asuna's sword back into the ground where he had gotten it from. Everyone turned their eyes to him, paling at the blood dripping from his hair onto his shoulders, and sliding down his face. They then took a moment to gawk at the bloodied blade that belonged to Asuna.

Evangeline hopped up on Koremitsu piggyback and arched her head over his shoulder to lick some of the blood from his cheek.

"What happened out here?" Negi asked from the ground beside Konoka, looking to Asuna for an answer.

"S-Someone tried to shoot him," She motioned shakily towards the only other boy there aside from Negi, "But he shot Konoka by accident. He said it was a gift from the Mother..."

"But he just learned that it was wrong to hurt young ladies, so we don't need to worry about him, anymore," Koremitsu tried to shrug Evangeline off, but she hung on and continued to enjoy the blood on him, "And I see you've got your friend, so let's get out of here before some other wack-job decides he wants to give us a present, alright?"

"And what are you people all doing at my house, exactly?" The vampire mumbled lowly, though she didn't care much for an answer.

Negi scooped Yue up once again, much like a groom carries his bride over the threshold. He felt kind of embarrassed when he though of it like that, but then Setsuna did the same for Konoka, and he felt better. The group started back towards the dorms to talk about what had happened, all except for Ku Fei, who had fallen to a sitting position and not moved since.

Koremitsu slowed down, looking over his shoulder and waving her after them, "Genji, we're leaving!"

The girl turned to look at him.

The shame he felt in that moment seared itself into his heart. She was looking at him like she didn't even know who he was. Seeing someone die was difficult, he knew it was. Killing someone sure as hell wasn't any easier unless you had a knack for blocking out your conscience. Seeing someone you know kill another human being, for whatever reason, can be difficult. It changes the image you have of them permanently, he knew firsthand. That look in her eyes would fade away sooner or later, but she wouldn't see him the same way ever again.

"Come on," Koremitsu turned around and followed after the rest of the group as Ku Fei rose to her feet.

-

"And that's what happened," Negi finished, sitting at the foot of Chachamaru's bed, which was currently occupied by both Konoka and Yue.

Everyone was quiet for a minute, taking it all in. They had three days to go before the Angels played their hand and the Mother returned.

"About the three the copycat gave you guys..." Asuna started, but let it trail off.

"A runaway, I know," Negi sighed, sort of wishing he hadn't gotten Koremitsu's story from his pigtailed friend. He looked over to the bathroom, the sound of a shower coming from behind the closed door, "All we can do is be careful..."

Setsuna, who was sitting up at the head of the bed, brushed Konoka's hair back and away from her forehead so she could apply a new, cool wet cloth to her forehead, "Are you sure you're alright, Ojou-sama?"

"I'm just tired, silly! I'm alright, really, stop fussing!" Konoka grinned.

"Ojou-sama, I'm sorry for leaving your side like I did. Because I wasn't there, you were injured..."

"No, no, I got hurt because I saw danger and I jumped in front of it, you didn't do anything!"

"That I didn't do anything is the problem. I failed you. This might have ended much worse than it did. We were very...I was very lucky that you survived. Should something happen to you I don't know what I would do with myself," Setsuna was talking as quietly as she could so as not to draw the attention of Negi, who was a few feet away, or any of the other girls.

"Set-chan, don't talk like that!" Konoka whisper-yelled back, "You can't always do everything for me, and sometimes scary things are going to happen. It's ok, though. That's just how it is. Don't worry so much..."

Setsuna couldn't help but worry, however, and her mind rang loud with the words Akane had spoken, _'She, also, has been chosen to live in our Mother's paradise. Could you imagine living in a world with her, with no pain, no danger, no fear?'_ What she had said was true, after all. The guardian was now feeling the very intense panic of not always being able to protect her greatest friend. _'In our Mother's world, she wouldn't need you to protect her, anymore. She would be safe.'_ She could have died today. Konoka almost died today. She would never have seen her smile again, hear her voice, feel her touch, enjoy her company...

'_You are her protector, are you not? Why deny her a wonderful life of peace and happiness?'_

Setsuna now turned her sorrowful eyes to the closed and locked bathroom door, as well, _'A runaway...Is it really him?"_

"Besides," Konoka said a little louder, "Kore-kun was there for me, and he helped me. If it weren't for him, I would have been too scared to do anything..."

"He is a good ally, after all..." Setsuna replied monotonously with unmoving eyes, while Konoka smiled.

-

Koremitsu let the shampoo rinse away under the showerhead as the steam continued to billow around him. The blood had long since been washed away, but he couldn't wash away the guilty feeling he had gotten from Ku Fei's face. Squeezing another puddle of cleaner into his hand, he resumed scrubbing his scalp, "Could you explain to me why they have a massive bath for the students, but they also give them showers in their rooms?"

"Were this a graphic novel," Serac replied blandly from outside the shower, "It could be called a better means to more fan service."

"Right, right, but this isn't any book."

"So it would seem."

"Man, what was that thing that hurt Princess? The metal thing?" Koremitsu continued to lather up his hair as he spoke.

"That was a gun. A weapon which fires high-velocity projectiles. Think of it as a slingshot, several hundred times over," Serac explained.

Koremitsu nodded a little, then asked, "And she pushed me out of its way, huh?"

"She did."

Dipping his head back under the water, the boy asked, "Why did you let her get shot?"

"I let nothing happen, you should understand that by now," Serac stated.

"I mean what was the point? Why should she have had to suffer like that when it was meant for me?"

"If it was meant for you, you would have received it. Though the bullet was intended for you, it was meant for her."

"And what?" Koremitsu grabbed the bar of soap for the third time, "Is her near death experience supposed to teach her something? Make her more cautious?"

"Not quite. You will understand why it happened soon enough. Be content in knowing that."

Scrubbing himself down, Koremitsu continued to talk, "So what do I do now? I'm Ku Fei's friend, and now I'm Konoka and Setsuna's friend. I even studied up on them, like you said," He grinned a little at remembering the panty raid, "But I don't see the payoff, yet."

"Now you will simply remain, and do as you see fit. Everything will happen as it is supposed to, and you need no further guidance from me."

"Serac...Did you bring me here to die?"

He was already alone.

-

Asuna rose from the couch when a knock at the door interrupted the momentary silence that had fallen over the group. Setsuna and Negi both moved to do the same, Negi cutting in front of his student to be the one to answer the door.

Everyone stood motionless for several seconds as they stared at the person outside in the hall, a big grin plastered on their pretty face. A shorter person was beside her, but that person went largely unnoticed at the moment.

"A-A-As-A..." Negi stammered, backing away in uncertainty. If it was Akane, she had certainly picked the right form to pose as for a crippling effect.

"Asakura-san...?" Asuna whispered, eyes as wide as saucers.

Konoka shot up, turning to look.

"Hey, guys!" Asakura continued to smile broadly, "Glad to see me, huh?"

_-----Author's other note: Connor/Akane called Setsuna Ani and Lucy, which were references to Ani Difranco and Lucy Liu, a bisexual rocker and a woman who admits to kissing other women, respectively. And now, screw you guys, I am going home. I mean, thanks for reading...-----_


	18. Elenchus

_-----Author's note: I do not own Negima!, but any other characters and ideas are my own. Enjoy...-----_

**Eleven days ago...**

"Flying alone, sir?"

"That depends, love. Want to come with?"

"Alone it is. And how exactly can I help you, today?"

Denied. Her newest customer informed her of where he wanted to go, though he did so through a light frown. Once he was finished, the woman was quick to ask him in her monophonically jovial voice, "And how will you be paying, today?"

Connor took just an extra second to look blankly at the brunette teller before dipping into his pocket and fishing out the gross sum that flying to his destination would require. He dropped the stack of bills somewhat ungratefully onto the counter, looking over his shoulder at the huge line of impatient people behind him, then back to the woman, "Better count it fast."

Pleased with his onslaught of spitefully small bills to pay the extravagant fee, the man in black leaned up a little against the counter as the line behind him continued to grow, all while growing more restless. The teller showed no sign of displeasure or annoyance, and merely counted the money down without a problem.

"Just let me take care of everything real quick..." The woman hummed aloud, her fingers dancing across the keyboard as she checked the flight availability (Connor wondered briefly why he handed her any money at all before she did this), whether or not he wanted a window seat, whether or not he wanted the kosher meal, and all of the other flight related topics that didn't mean very much to him.

"Your flight leaves in two hours, through gate-"

"Yeah, I know what I'm doing," Connor grabbed the proffered ticket, cutting the teller short.

"Is there anything else I can help you with today?" He was asked in a cheery manner that caused him to nearly gag.

"Yeah," He muttered, turning around, "You could develop a personality."

"I'll get right to work on that, sir."

"God, no one should ever be that cheery," He groaned to himself as he took in the impatient glares of the people in the line. He was rather enjoying walking by them and getting the mean looks for being such a slow customer. He came really close to going back up to the front of the line and distracting the doomed-to-impatient-people teller, but decided against it. Everyone was already pissed enough, as it was. What was it about flying that got everyone so anxious to move like the wind?

"And why shouldn't anyone ever be that cheery?" A small voice asked from behind Connor, though he didn't turn to look at the owner. Instead, he kept walking.

"Because it's not natural. No doubt she wants to jump up on that desk and start shooting everyone. Oh, guess I shouldn't say that so loud. Wouldn't want security to come and molest me."

"But look," The young female voice called after him. Something about her voice was familiar, but he couldn't quite place it. Connor looked over his shoulder to find the brunette teller talking pleasantly with the next man in line. Both were smiling, and even chuckling a little bit. The rest of the people in the line didn't seem as impatient as before, either. The gloomy cloud over the area had seemed to disperse, "Maybe that's just how she is. When someone smiles, it's easier for other people to smile, too."

"Where the hell are you?" Connor asked, looking around for the voice. He nearly fell over when he turned around to find a hovering girl behind him, "Casper? What the...What are you doing here?"

Sayo Aizaka gave him a shy smile, clapping her transparent hands together and tilting her head to the side, "I'm here to help you!"

-

An hour later and the unlikely team composed of Connor and Sayo found themselves sitting outside of their gate, waiting for their plane to be ready. The ghost was stunned by the sheer size of the flying machines, and had her face pressed against the windows to stare at them as they moved around, getting into position for flight. Well, her face wasn't exactly 'pressed' against the glass, it was more positioned so that it appeared to be pressed against the glass.

Sayo told him that Serac had told her to go, and that he would 'let' her. She told him that she couldn't leave the campus, and he said she could. Sure enough, he sent her to the airport like a child to her room. Connor didn't ask any further questions. If Serac sent her here, then there was no second-guessing it, or challenging her accompaniment. That was just how it was going to be, and he was resigned to it.

Having gone through security (Which only took an hour due to Connor's excessive use of magic to speed the process up. After all, the soles of his boots were made of steel, he had a sword, two guns, and a titanium pen he had used as a killing device once already. If he had tried to bring round-tipped scissors with him, though, he wasn't sure any amount of magic could have gotten him through) already, and since he had his one bag sent to luggage, he had nothing to do but sit and wait the last forty-five minutes out until they were allowed to board the aircraft.

And he was fine with that. He had no problem sitting there in the agreeable silence that was only frequently broken by the sound of a takeoff, or the annoying announcements over the intercoms. The steady hum of bustling travelers didn't even bother him, it almost became the same sound as quiet, to him. They were just doing their thing, living their lives. Not affecting him in the least. And then there was that other thing.

"Connor-sensei, where are we going? Where are we going?" That other thing asked in excitement, bouncing from the seat on his left over him to the one on his right, and repeating.

"I'm not your teacher anymore, Casper, don't call me that," He replied through a sigh.

Sayo stopped bouncing around and settled down on his left side, "Oh...that's right. But why?"

"Why what?"

"Why did you quit?"

Sending a look at the ghost from the corner of his eye, Connor replied, "Because teaching at Mahora wasn't the right kind of life for me."

"Then what kind of life is right for you?"

"Ha, not that one."

Sayo leaned over, putting her hands on his arm to keep herself upright, "Why was Mahora bad for you? Did you not like it there at all?"

"I didn't say it was bad for me," The ex-teacher groaned, trying to shrug his ghostly companion off, "I just said that it wasn't right for me. I did like it there, I just..."

"Did you not like the people?"

"No, I did like the people. Of course I did."

"Was the pay bad?"

"The pay wasn't bad, money's never been one of my big issues, anyway."

Sayo continued to ask questions she believed she knew the answers to, "Was it because of the baby, then? Because of what everyone would think of you?"

Connor leaned back, Sayo tilting with him as he did, "Wow, you already know about that? It hasn't even been two whole days...guess gossip girl did her thing just fine. ...No, I don't care what people think about me."

"Then why do you always dress like that?"

Opening one of his eyes to take a peek at the girl who was still pressed against his arm, he replied, "Because it looks cool."

"If you don't care what other people think of you, then why do you want to look cool?"

Grimacing, Connor thought about it for a second. He then replied, "I dress this way for me. I like it. It doesn't have anything to do with anyone else."

"If you liked pink more than black, would you wear a pink coat around, instead?"

"Of course I wouldn't! Everyone would think I was...wait..." Yep, he had fallen right into the trap.

Sayo was quick to spring when she saw Connor slow to a stop, "You say you don't care what other people think about you, and that you wouldn't wear pink because of what they would think about you. Is that right?"

Now opening his other eye, realizing that Sayo was intellectually kicking the crap out of him without even stating anything for herself, Connor nodded, "Yeah, I did say that."

Sayo returned his surprised look with one of interest, curiosity lingering in her eyes, "Then is it fair to assume that you do care what other people think about you?"

"...Can't beat the logic, Casper, you caught me. I think I'll go and knit you a congratulatory sweater with needles made of my thoughts, and threads made of my emotions. That way, you can figure out how I feel about things just by looking down on yourself. And if you're constantly looking down on yourself, I won't have to do it for you, ghosty, because the last thing I need is to have a fourteen-year-old ghost of sixty some years thinking she can give me therapy. Please," He folded his arms, closing his eyes again.

Sayo was quiet for a few seconds, but far from done talking. She'd actually made a mistake in her tactic by straying from her actual question and point, "Is it that you look down on me, or that you envy me?"

"Yeah, that's it. I envy you because you're dead and no one can see you, for the most part. You lucky little girl, you."

"I was asking if you envied me because I have friends. People who care about me, even if I am like this. Do you?"

"Last time I checked," Connor muttered nastily, "Your only friend was taking a permanent nap beneath a bunch of yellow flowers. So d-don't..." Allowing himself to trail off when he realized what an ass hole he must have just sounded like, Connor opened his eyes and took another peek at Sayo.

The girl had let her head droop a little, but her eyes were devoid of tears, which was a good thing. He had definitely said the wrong thing, there, but at least she wasn't breaking down because of it.

"I'm sorry," The man mumbled, "That was out of line. I'm just frustrated. ...Maybe...Maybe I am a little envious of you, I don't know."

Sniffing just slightly, the ghost asked, "Why?"

Scratching the bridge of his nose as he spoke, Connor replied, "Because of how you are. You might be shy, but you have no problem playing nice and smiling, and all of that other crap that you need to do to get by. I want to be like that sometimes, too, but at the same time I can't stand it."

Sayo opened her mouth to ask 'why', but Connor answered before she did so, "Because I can't do it. I don't want to be one of those people who put on a smile everyday and act like everything's just fine, because it's not. I've seen a lot of things, Sayo, and most of them weren't good for smiling at. Turn on the news and you'll get a hundred and one new reasons to stop acting like a giddy little kid."

Surprised he used her name instead of a nickname, Sayo listened as her ex-teacher continued, "Right now...I'm trying to make up for something terrible that I did. ...But I'm wasting my time. Nothing I do or say is going to fix what happened, or even make it acceptable. I don't care that I didn't mean it, because it doesn't change the fact that I did it, and nothing can bring her back, now...But it's not stopping me from trying."

"Asakura..." Sayo whispered, finally removing her hands from Connor's arm.

Connor nodded just slightly, sitting upright and setting his elbows on his knees so he could hunch over a little, "I killed her...and hid the truth from her friends. They think she just transferred schools. That maybe one day they can see her again. That maybe they'll get an email from her, anything. ...That she's alive."

He let out a heavy sigh, remembering what she looked like, "But she's not, and I can't ever tell any of them because I don't want them to know. I don't want it to hurt them, any of them. ...I don't want to be the cause of any of their pain. I guess, in that sense, I do care what they think about me. I don't want them to know me as the guy who killed one of their best friends. I don't want them to like me, but I don't want them to hate me, either."

"But why? Why don't you want them to like you?" Sayo asked her umpteenth question.

"I don't deserve it," He said, bluntly, "I can't accept that even after doing the things I've done in my awful life that there's a happy ending for me. I don't deserve that kind of ending, and I won't get one. The teller who helped me, the one who was smiling and all too happy to help...She reminded me of Mahora, a little bit. Everyone's nice, everyone's pretty, everyone's helpful, everyone's there for you, everyone's everything but wrong! That's why I left, Casper. I didn't leave because of the baby, I left because I didn't want the happiness that I was being given."

Despite his depression, he continued, "Not even a week after she died, I was...I was running around, flirting with Sunshine and playing matchmaker for Freckles," He let out a groan as he leaned back in his seat, about ready to stop talking, "That's the kind of respect I had for the girl who I killed." Pissed because he felt tears start to mist up his eyes he steeled himself so that not a single one would form.

Sayo, unseen by Connor, was trembling a little bit, and her fists were balled up at her sides. When she spoke, her voice was louder and stronger than he had ever heard it before, "Stop it! You keep saying me, me, me, and I this and I that, well stop it!"

The man let his head lull over so he could look at her, though he kept quiet.

"It's not about you! It's about us! Your class, and your friends, and Negi-sensei! You keep saying that you don't deserve to be happy, well what about all of us? What if you make us happy? Are you going to make us all sad just so you can run away from everything? Who says you don't deserve to be happy? No one! No one's saying that!"

"I say that," Connor pointed out, still looking at Sayo as though he were only half-listening to what she was saying.

"Fine. Well since you care about what other people think, I think you do deserve to be happy. Everyone else would say that, too. You should be happy with all of us back there!"

As though he were contemplating the idea, when really he wasn't, Connor looked away from Sayo and simply closed his eyes.

Frustrated and somewhat disappointed that her uncharacteristically smooth-talking ways weren't cracking him entirely, Sayo blurted, "You can be happy with everyone, or be sad by yourself! It's not...It's not a very hard choice..."

"You're right," Connor admitted, nodding, though he didn't open his eyes, "By myself it is."

Sayo sighed, realizing she had just wasted a lot of effort. She jumped, however, when she felt a pat on the head, looking up to find Connor forcing her a weak smile, "Thanks for trying, though."

After a few minutes passed by in silence between the two, Connor up and asked, "Where the hell did you learn to talk like that, though? Asking all of those questions to get me to mess up and contradict myself?"

"Oh," Sayo blushed a little bit, which isn't supposed to be possible because ghosts have no blood, "One of the highschoolers is doing a report on Socrates, and I've been reading the book over her shoulder. That's how he used to win conversations; By asking questions. That's where I learned it..."

"Socrates, huh? Well that's a coincidence," Connor mumbled.

"Oh! You never did tell me where we're going!" The ghost stated, looking excited again. She never did get to go very far from campus, even in life, and now she was getting on a plane!

"We're going to Greece, actually, to see Socrates. That's where the Thousand Master is," Connor replied succinctly.

"Ooh, Greece! That sounds fun...But...Socrates is dead..."

"Remember, Casper, this isn't a vacation. We've got a job to do. ...And thanks for the tip, I've no experience handling dead things."

"Right, right. So, who is this Thousand Master guy, anyway? He sounds scary..." Sayo shivered a little bit.

Connor looked over as the woman at their gate informed them via loudspeaker that their plane was now ready for boarding. Connor stood up, and Sayo was quick to stand up as well. Er, float up as well. The man turned and grinned at her, "He's Negi's dad. Didn't you know?"

Sayo's eyes went wide as she gawked at Connor in surprise, her mouth like a little cheerio.

"Guess that means you didn't..." He paused when he realized everyone around him who had been waiting for the same flight was staring at him like he was insane, talking to nobody. His entire row of seating had been vacant, but the other seats had been full, and they had all listened to him rant to himself for a good forty-five minutes, now.

"What? Do you think I care what you people think? Go to hell," Connor stomped off to give his ticket and board the airplane, hoping none of them knew that he did care what they thought. Now THAT would be embarrassing.

-

Sayo, who was perched on Connor's lap due to the seat beside him being taken, whispered to him, "Is the Thousand Master really Negi-sensei's dad?"

Connor nodded, "Yeah," He whispered back, "He is."

"But he's a bad guy?"

"Wouldn't that make it simpler?"

The ghost groaned, "But isn't he going to be really strong, then? I mean, if he's Negi-sensei's dad, he must be! Aren't you scared of him at all? What if you can't get Asakura-san's soul from him?"

"Why would I be scared of that?" Connor asked under his breath as he stood up, letting Sayo into his chair, "What a stupid question. I have to go to the bathroom, I'll be right back."

"Ok, whatever, man," The passenger in a suit who was beside him mumbled, shrugging, "I'll wait for you...I guess."

Shaking his head as he went, Connor moved swiftly down through the aisles to get to the restroom, suave royal blue seats on both sides as he went. By a stroke of luck he found the restroom vacant, and quickly locked himself in. He dropped to his knees in front of the toilet and lowered his face to it, his flip-flopping stomach throwing out all of its contents. So he sat there, vomiting in the bathroom of an airplane bound for Amsterdam, his first stop on the way to Greece.

Once he was finished, he rose to his feet and moved to the sink. He rinsed his hands off, then cupped them so he could get a drink. Once the water had gone down, he pulled the tiny bottle of liquor he had taken from the beverage tray while boarding, rinsing his mouth out with it before spitting it out into the sink. He looked at himself in the mirror, muttering, "Of course I'm not scared...Of course not..."

A knock at the door came, and a woman's voice accompanied it, "Excuse me, please return to your seat. We'll be taking off shortly."

_-----Author's other note: And so we find ourselves en route to Greece, where the Thousand Master awaits. Where, exactly, still remains to be seen, but Connor and Sayo are on their way. They have to make a stop in Amsterdam first, though. (Because I checked actual flights and rates and found that Amsterdam was one of the stops for a particularly priced/timed flight to Greece (Not gonna say which city, yet, though it's not a tough guess)). By the way, 'Elenchus' is Greek for 'examination', which is the Socratic method of reasoning that Sayo used. Granted, it wasn't perfect since Sayo was using it, but it was still the basis of her questions._

_Thanks for reading...-----_


	19. In A Dream State

_-----Author's Note: I do not own Negima!, but any other characters and ideas are my own. Enjoy...-----_

"Whoa!"

The vibrations picked up a little bit.

"Whoa, whoa!"

Speed was on the rise, everyone leaned back into their seats.

"WHOA!"

There was a slight tilt as the plane pulled off of the ground.

"WHOOOOOOAAAAAAA!!!!!"

"God, I shouldn't have asked for the window seat," Connor muttered through a sigh as Sayo continued to shriek in excitement, face pressed against the glass to stare out at the quickly shrinking world. It didn't help his dreary mood at all that the giddy ghost was currently sitting in his lap, bouncing up and down well enough that he himself was wobbling around. He assumed that the guy sitting beside him would likely think he was having a mild seizure.

He was right.

"S-Stewardess, I think this m-" The well meaning man in the suit started to call for help, but was quickly silenced when Connor slapped a hand onto his chest, dim magic blurring the air around his hand as the magic shut him down, sending him into deep slumber.

"We'll have none of that, buddy," Connor groaned, still wobbling back and forth as Sayo continued to exude youthful excitement in the form of girlish bouncing. Setting his hand on top of her head to still her, he turned her to look her in the eye and said, "Casper, I know you're excited, but this is hardly the place to dry hump me, so maybe you should hold still."

Sayo blinked slowly, confused, "Can I...dry hump you somewhere else?"

Connor blinked slowly, confused, "That depends."

Sayo tilted her head a bit to the side, "On what?"

Connor tilted his head a bit to the side, "Do I have to pay you?"

Shaking her head, the ghost replied, "No."

Nodding his head, the ex-teacher replied, "Then yes, maybe another time."

"Connor-sensei?"

"Don't call me that?"

"What's dry hump?"

Looking at the ghost as if she were stupid, Connor spoke slowly so she could understand, "A hump that is not wet."

The ghost mouthed the word 'oh' tipping her head back as though in understanding. Of course that made sense, something that was wet couldn't be dry, and something that was dry most surely couldn't be wet, so in retrospect it had seemed like a silly question to ask. Still, she wasn't sure exactly what a hump had to do with any of this, dry or not. Unless hump was a new age slang term for 'be excited with', or something. That's all she had been doing, expressing her excitement with Connor in the form of giddiness. The terms didn't seem to want to connect with one another, however. It just didn't seem right. The more she thought about it, however, the more she convinced herself that plenty of slang terms made no sense. Why would you call a friend of yours 'dog'? Dog was used in the past as a diminutive word, often paired with filthy, or some other variant word.

Connor raised an eyebrow at how Sayo's eyes had gone glassier than they normally were, and how she had also stopped moving and talking. He wasn't sure if he should be a little worried or very thankful. He decided on the latter, and tried to relax into his chair.

The same thing goes for the term 'boo', when in reference to a boyfriend or a girlfriend. Boo was supposed to be used when attempting to scare someone, or play peek-a-boo with a young child. It made very little to no sense to refer to people you cared for as 'boos' unless they frightened you, they were young children therefore making you a pedophile, or they were cute little ghosts that blushed and turned away when you looked to them. So it was decided. Just because a slang term didn't make sense didn't mean that she had gotten it wrong, it likely meant she was correct.

That being the case, she needed to use it to prove that she really did understand and wasn't just a slow girl pretending. Forget the fact that was the truth! How to go about using it though? She assumed to 'hump', as she had previously been doing with Connor, was a verb, and that when Connor had used it in the phrase 'but this is hardly the place to dry hump me', he had been using it in its correct form. So that likely meant there were other common forms of the word. The past term she assumed was humped, the present she assumed was humping, hump, or humps, and the future term was probably will hump. A person who humps is the humper, and the person who is getting humped would be the humpee, or the humped. A person who is capable of being humped must also, in turn, be humpable, which is to be excitable, which everyone can be given different circumstances. Therefore everyone must be humpable.

"The boy humps happily..." She whispered, practicing the word in an easy sentence to test its feel, "The humping girl laughed loudly. ...No, that's all wrong."

And indeed, it was all wrong. If the definition for the word 'hump' was roughly translated to 'be excited' , than 'humps' could be 'is excited' and if she plugged that definition in place of her first sentence, she came up with the boy is excited happily, and that didn't make much sense. Thinking as carefully as she could about this, she muttered her next words carefully, "Grandpa humps because of his new pills. Does that work?" Maybe 'hump' could simply mean excite. That would make it all much easier.

"Did you say something, Casper?" Connor whispered, opening one eye just barely.

Then it struck her like a bolt of lightning; A dry hump, the term Connor had first used to set off her thought process, was obviously an insult! If hump meant exciting, or a variation of the word excite, then 'dry hump' was surely a sarcastic comment about her company being boring! She had been so enthusiastic, and yet it wasn't good enough? That made her a little sad. When she turned her eyes to Connor's, she could feel her face get a little red from the thought of him disliking her and not wanting her boring company. It made her embarrassed that at the same time she felt just a tiny bit of water/plasma form in the corners of her eyes. She wanted him to want her there, and was hoping to convey as much through the moment they gazed at one another.

Connor knew something had gone horribly wrong in those few minutes he had his eyes closed. Sayo's face was tinged with just a little color, her eyes were big and sparkly with the dew of barred tears, and he could see an odd yearning in them.

She yearned to be accepted by the one person who could still see her. The one person she could touch and who could touch her back. The one person who had held her beside Asakura's grave while they cried together.

'_Oh crap,'_ Connor groaned inwardly, _'Ghosts aren't supposed to be able to do the schoolgirl love sparkle, are they?'_

"Connor-sensei..." Sayo whispered, still looking up at him.

Choking back his reply of don't call me that, the man simply sat there in confused suspense.

"I don't want to dry hump you..."

PHEW! He had thought she had possibly misunderstood what dry hump actually meant, or had maybe not caught it as a joke. That look on her face likely meant she was just embarrassed by his passing suggestion of it. How foolish of him to have fallen for her 'what's dry hump?' line!

As the grin started to break out on Connor's face, Sayo finished her sentence, "I want to wet hump you."

In retrospect of that moment, Connor would always wonder how it was possible for not only his face to drain of all color, but for the immediate area around him to follow suit. For the first time in a good while, words failed him. How was it possible for this to be happening? Ghosts aren't supposed to be like that! Especially not this ghost! Serac had set him up!

The ghost's hands found their way to her chest, clearly indicating her heart, "Every time I see you, in my heart, you hump me. Is...Is it like that for you, too?" Connor's mouth slid open just a little, but it wasn't to form words, it was more of a shocked reaction he couldn't really control. How did he even go about doing whatever he did with her in her head!? His eyes shot down nervously when he felt a cool hand over his own heart, "Inside, haven't I ever humped you? Even just a little?"

That was when Connor had a sudden urge to use the restroom, run laps through the aisles, or jump off the plane, whichever got him away from this mess the best. As he undid his safety belt to jump up and dash for the bathroom Sayo latched onto his waist and held on wailing, "DON'T RESENT ME! I'LL BE MORE EXCITING! DON'T RESENT ME!"

An old lady watched the young man hurry down the aisle towards the bathroom, chanting, "I don't resent you! I don't resent you!"

The ancient woman turned to her wrinkled old husband, who said bluntly, "I resent you."

"Shut up and go back to sleep, ya hopeless romantic."

"Damn, what did he eat?" A voice somewhere behind the two murmured.

The initial wonder at the young man's outburst faded away as the minutes rolled by, but quickly returned when he came hurrying back towards his seat.

"OH NOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!!" Sayo bawled as she sped away from the bathroom, having just discovered her mistake and learning what she seemed to have said. Gigantic streams of embarrassed tears were left fluttering in her wake.

"It's ok, we don't have to have sex to get along!" Connor whisper-yelled to no one, it appeared, as he run-walked down the aisle.

"HA! What a liar," The old man smirked without opening his eyes.

"I don't even know that it's possible!" The young man seemed to grab a hold of nothing and then dropped into his seat beside a sleeping man.

"I hear ya, young fella," The old woman sighed bitterly, much to the old man's chagrin.

Connor wobbled back and forth for a short while as Sayo tried to wriggle out of his grasp, "Casper, wait a sec, hang on!" He whispered loudly as she continued to bawl.

"I don't wanna hump you, Connor-sensei! You've never humped me in my heart! I mean, the stuff I said, I didn't mean it!"

"Is the thought really so horrible?" The young man asked.

"No, it's just..." Slowing down after realizing what she just said, she turned a vicious shade of...ghost color, and then continued her bawling anew, her embarrassment even worse.

-

It was a long flight, which provided ample time for both to calm down a bit. Hours had passed since Sayo was learned in the usage of the word hump, and she currently sat perched on an asleep Connor's lap, her head on his shoulder with nothing but the sound of his breathing and a baby crying several rows back to keep her company. More than once did the man in black stir in his sleep, threatening to wake, which caused the ghost to sit upright as quickly as she could without jarring him from his sleep altogether. For every time this happened, however, she found her head pulled back down to his shoulder like she was the steel to his magnet. She couldn't help it, the thrill of the simple luxury of touch was the most intoxicating thing she had ever known.

'_Everyone just takes this for granted, being able to do this...' _She thought, bringing her hand up to place on Connor's chest, as she had done earlier. His beating heart sent ripples of simple sensation down her arm, _'They don't realize how lucky they really are.'_

Being left with basically no interaction at all and with very minimum touch had left Sayo, to say the least, lonely. Sixty years is a long time, and to be stuck with the mind set of a fourteen-year-old girl, alone, for sixty years wasn't the greatest time to be had. Connor wasn't the greatest person she had ever met, far from it, but in that he was a companion she hadn't experienced apart from Asakura in her lengthy un-life as a ghost, he held special importance to her. Also, unlike Asakura, he was a boy...

At this intriguing thought, Sayo found her eyes slowly wander to Connor's lips, which were just barely parted in his sleep. They looked so warm and inviting...NO! She couldn't possibly do such a bold thing! Sure, Connor might do it were the positions reversed, but she wasn't him! Not to mention all of the people around! Not that they could see her at all, but still! ...One quick one would be ok, right? In all of her existence she'd never kissed a boy (Or a girl!!!) And that didn't seem fair. She was over seventy, counting her life, and she'd not yet been kissed. Surely Connor would never find out, and if he did, she guessed the worst that would happen is he would tease her about it before forgetting, anyway.

So anxious and embarrassed she was trembling, the ghost pulled her head from his shoulder and sat there, hand on his chest, staring at his expressionless face. She suddenly felt waves of shame and guilt for what she was about to do, and decided that it might be easier if she imagined Connor to be someone he wasn't. At that thought, Connor's face morphed into that of a sleeping Negi's, much to Sayo's embarrassment. She shook her head until Connor was back. Ok, so maybe someone she didn't know! It took a bit of hard thought, seeing as how she knew no boys and thus had a hard time conjuring up one of the faces she had seen a few times, before, but she eventually got a clear image of a boy about her age in her head. Sheer determination and imagination in tune with one another, Connor's face morphed into the boy's, and then everything was ready.

Except for the fact that now she had no desire to kiss. With a weak sigh, Connor's face popped back to its old self. Then a problem arose. The desire to kiss was back. Stupid indecisiveness! It took a minute, but the boy's face came back. Sure enough, you guessed it, kissing sounded rather unappealing. Once she was gazing at Connor's lips, for the third time now, she realized with a little start that she wanted to kiss him, not the other boy.

WELL THAT WAS JUST PERFECT! If she wasn't so concerned about waking the guy up, she would have been banging her head on the window beside her, at this point. _'OH, forget it!' _She steeled herself, swinging her head down and giving him a quick peck on the lips. It was so fast that it may as well have never happened, but the next minute or so Sayo spent by being doughy eyed and happy. The kiss seemed to have the opposite effect she was looking for, though, because the need for a smooch hadn't gone away, it had only gotten stronger. She recalled that some people said to drink slowly to quench your thirst, for gulping wouldn't help. Did that mean she had to...

She slowly inched forward, now both of her hands were on his steadily rising and falling chest to balance herself. She stopped when she could feel his light breath on her chin, gliding a hand up to the grey cloth on his forehead, gently sliding it over his eyes. For this moment she would be his, and he would be hers. No one needed to know. Sayo closed her eyes and softly placed her mouth over his.

The hot sensation going through her was quickly replaced with a frigid one as everything physical around her failed, and she fell forward. Her eyes popping open, the ghost looked around at the vast expanse of darkness surrounding her, and instantly became afraid. "C-Connor-sensei? Where'd you go?"

"He went nowhere," A chilling voice replied from the all-encompassing shadows.

"S-Serac-san? Is that...is that you? Where am I?"

A click went off, the sound of snapping fingers as a beam of light shot down from nowhere, encircling a single area of the void. Sayo flinched away from the light at first, so bright was it that it momentarily stung her eyes. After a moment, though, she was able to look into it and see a lone pedestal with a big book on it.

"You are in the boy's mind," Serac replied, stepping into the light where the book was.

"In...Connor's? But how?" Sayo asked, timidly approaching the light and the man.

Serac, who had been eyeing the book, slowly turned his head to look at the ghost and spoke, "There are some who believe that the dead can make contact with the living while in their dream state."

Sayo blinked, "Is that true?"

"It isn't. A dream is no more than a sequence of events taking place in the mind while the dreamer is asleep. Whenever someone dreams of a deceased person it is because they are thinking of them, subconsciously or not. There is nothing otherworldly about them."

"What about dreams that predict the future? Those are pretty out there..."

"Dreams give no premonition unless purposefully imposed by an outside magical force which wishes the dreamer to see something. Either your dreams have no meaning, or they are being manipulated to manipulate you."

Now into the pillar of light herself, Sayo asked, "So how am I in Connor's mind, then, if the dead can't contact them?"

"By giving yourself to him you unintentionally opened a connection with him and slipped into his being. Your consciousness merged with his, in a sense. You could do it to anyone so long as you meant it. One of the benefits of being a spirit, this is a kind of possession. You can view the contents of his heart and mind in the form of dreams, but you cannot contact him in any way. He has and never will have any idea that you were here unless you tell him as much," Serac tipped his head down at the tome, "It gives new meaning to reading someone like a book."

"So this book is..." Sayo trailed off, wondering at the possibilities.

"This book is the book of his life up until this point. As every day passes it grows in length as he collects new memories for it to record," The Wanderer answered softly.

The ghost was suddenly very interested in the book, but thought better than to just dive at it and read to her heart's content. She recalled a conversation they had shared, before...

"_Y-You said that...there were two girls that you killed. What did you mean?" Sayo whimpered a little, managing to get her words through her light crying._

"_...I had a talk with Sunshine about girlfriends awhile ago. She asked if I had one, and I said no. I didn't tell her that I used to have one, because I didn't want to tell her what had happened to this girl," The man in black muttered, now deciding that as soon as he found the will to get up and leave this terrible place, the first thing he was going to do was buy enough liquor to kill an elephant._

"_Were you in love with her?"_

"_Was I in love? Ha, ha, ha...so much meaning in one damned word. Yeah...I loved her. I loved her...a lot. I don't think I'll ever love anyone like I did her. But Fate had different plans for me, and circumstances got in the way of things...in the end, I...killed her, too."_

"_B-But you didn't mean too, right? It was an accident...like with-"_

_Connor cut her short, "No, it wasn't an accident. I meant to kill her, and I did. Negi asked me before, what I did to get my power, what price I paid to be able to tap into black magic. She was the price. I killed her for power, and because of that power, I've killed someone else I care about," He glanced over at the surprised girl behind him, not surprised to find a hint of disgust in her eyes, "Easy to hate, hard to understand. I know."_

"_...What were the circumstances?"_

"_What?"_

"_You said there were circumstances, right? What were they?" Connor forced a grin, and turned to face the other way once again. "You say 'easy to hate, hard to understand'. Maybe that's because you haven't told anyone everything, yet!"_

"_Tell you what, Casper. You tell me exactly how you died, and I'll tell you why I did it. As far as I can see, right now, we're even in the back story department."_

"_Why would you tell me all of that...if you won't even tell Negi or Ku Fei?"_

"_You saying we aren't friends?" The teacher asked sarcastically, before continuing, "You show me yours, I'll show you mine. Guess that's what I'm thinking. Plus, who are you gonna tell, anyway?"_

This was her chance to find out. She would be able to see what happened in the past that made Connor the way he is, today. See what got him the powers that caused her best friend's death. How could she possibly turn this opportunity down? Would it be wrong of her to look, though? This seemed a terrible invasion of privacy, but was it enough on her conscience to break her curiosity?

"Serac-san..." She whispered, "You said I did this unintentionally, right?"

"Yes."

"But not accidentally?"

"Such a clever girl."

"Why am I here?"

Serac continued to gaze into her big bright eyes, and she continued to stare right back, "Because you gave yourself to him."

"I meant...why am I here with him? In the plane?"

"I know what you meant."

The steely cold eyes betrayed nothing, and it appeared Serac had no words for her as to why he picked her to go with Connor. Deciding it best to change the topic before she fell out of favor, assuming she was in favor, the ghost asked, "Why does he hate you?"

"The book shows," He replied succinctly.

"The book? Ok, then how did you get in here?" The rather hilarious image of Serac 'giving himself' to Connor formed in her mind.

"Connor and I are very closely tied. I am a part of him, and he is a part of me."

Sayo had no idea what that meant other than that they were probably very good friends at one point in time. Serac was rather weird, so she could see him trying to form a kind of brother pact with Connor or something strange like that.

"One more question?" She asked meekly. When Serac didn't move or reply, she asked, "How do I get out of here?"

"You will wake from this slumber when Connor does. The possession period ends when sleep ends."

"So...I could be stuck in here for hours!?"

"It may be hours, but it will not feel as such."

Sayo sighed, nodding, "I guess that's how it would work, sleep used to be really fast, I remember that much..."

Both fell silent as they watched the book in quiet wonder, as though it might at any moment burst to life and jump at them, snarling viciously. For a thing that held so much history and in a place as untraveled as another's mind the book, itself, was rather bland in appearance. A plain, brown leather cover over a couple hundred yellowing pages. Nothing at all that set it apart from any other journal or nondescript book in Library Island. As the minutes rolled by, Serac remained as patiently stoic as ever, but Sayo began to fidget more and more, her mind tinkering with the notion of reading the book almost without her consent. Before too long she gave in to the desire and reached out, a little surprised with how much ease she was able to grasp the object.

As though he was reading her mind, Serac stated, "You have to really want it."

Hoping the man didn't see the tinge of color that comment brought on, Sayo gently opened the cover of the book and stared in interest at the series of words in it. There was a number before every line, starting at one and ending who knows where? She flipped the page to see how many chapters there were, and found that no matter how many pages she skimmed over there was nothing in the book but chapter titles. A little frustrated, she skipped to the end and looked at the final page only to find the last chapter was entitled _'My Humps'_. Stifling the embarrassed laughter and awkward grin that brought on, the ghost turned her eyes to Serac, "There's nothing to read in here, just chapter names..."

Serac was looking at the last chapter title, himself, though he did not appear to find it humorous at all, simply another thing to look at. He didn't give her the courtesy of looking at her as he spoke, "I told you that you view the contents of his mind and heart as dreams. The book is simply the key to the ignition. You are not to read about his life, but to see it and feel it as he did as though it were a dream. By speaking the title of the chapter, you start the dream."

Sayo grimaced a little, "How do I know where to start? There's a lot to go through..."

"This is a fairly small amount of data to sift through, as Connor suffered an injury which damaged the memories of his earlier life. This book contains the information of his life from roughly sixteen to his current age of nineteen," At this point Serac snapped his fingers and the book's pages fluttered back to somewhere near the beginning, "The seventy-seventh chapter is a fair place to begin."

The young girl of seventy some years followed the numbers down to seventy-seven and then read the title aloud, "My Mentor?"

The pages tore themselves from the book and scattered out around the two in a fluttering storm of rippling papers, the ever increasing number of them threatening to swallow the two alive. Sayo let out a surprised shriek as what she thought were only hundreds of pages turned into what must have been thousands, though she couldn't even hear herself over the thunderous crinkling and brushing of the pages. She closed her eyes, waiting for it to stop, and no sooner than she did all noise faded away and a bright light was filtering through her eyelids. Though she was a bit afraid to, Sayo forced her eyes open, quick to gape at what was around her.

The girl found herself in a vivid emerald valley, the tall grass rippling in waves like water under the breeze. The blood red sun was blazing above in the milky pink sky as it continued its slow descent beyond the horizon. No trees or shrubbery defiled the gently sloping land, which was green and lush as far as Sayo's eyes could reach. She heard voices coming a short distance behind her and whipped around to find Serac and a younger version of Connor slowly approaching her.

It was the weirdest transformation she had ever seen in her entire non-life. If she didn't already know this was a kind of dream she would have pinched herself. She could barely recognize her teacher in the form he was in. He was about half a foot shorter, he didn't have his faded grey bandanna or his black coat, but most odd was the look on his face. He seemed completely devoid of worries or deep thoughts. A big, she almost wanted to say stupid, grin was locked onto his face, and his eyes were wider, brighter, and livelier than she had ever seen them. His hair was a bit shorter, and it was just a shade lighter than she recalled it, on the plane. Serac looked exactly the same. No hint of emotion on his face, no sign of youth or age given anywhere. He was speaking, and his voice was just as blatantly dull as it always was. The only noticeable difference was how Connor seemed to be lapping it up like milk from a bowl.

"...Is why you're here, today," The Wanderer finished his sentence as the two came within earshot of the ghost, who told herself there was no need to hide because not only was she invisible, but this was basically a dream she was the spectator of. It was like a movie!

Connor looked up at Serac, who in turn looked down at him. The boy took this as the robed man asking him if he were ready, so he promptly declared, "You're the Boss Man! You know best. Teach, and I will be taught."

Serac raised his hand slightly, appearing to try and grab a hold of the air in front of him, "Very well. Magic is an invaluable tool to anyone, as you've seen for yourself. It can be used in everyday life, in battle, for objective good, and for objective evil. It is like every other tool in that it is as pure or foul as the one who wields it. This being the case, you may discard the notion that magic is the work of devils."

Connor nodded, shrugging just barely.

"Many people fear magic because they cannot explain it. It is something unknown, and as much as the unknown triggers intrigue and desire, it also ignites fright and anger. Bear this in mind at all times, as people will not always react as you think they will when exposed to such powers that they do not comprehend. It is imperative you understand that comprehension is key in mastering the various uses of magic. You must understand the world and how it works."

Serac, who still had his hand up in front of him as if to hold something, turned his fist over and opened his hand to reveal a small stone resting in his open palm. Connor ogled the object for a few seconds before realizing it was just a rock and losing interest in it.

"If I am to show you this stone, you can agree that it is a stone, correct?"

Connor looked at the thing again, "It's a rock, yeah."

The rock split cleanly in two in Serac's hand, which caused Connor to frown a little, "Now I have divided the stone into two different, yet equal, pieces. Is it still the same stone?"

"Well..." Connor wasn't sure what to say. It was basically the same rock, but now it was two rocks. The two rocks weren't the same as the one larger rock before, because they were different in size. Still... "It is the same rock as before, it just looks different."

The two parts of the rock each divided into halves so that there were now four pieces, "And now is it the same stone?"

"Yes, it just looks different."

The bits of stone in the man's hand crumbled into specks of dust, each forming little mounds which then swirled together into one mound of reddish brown dirt, "In this state, is it the same stone as it was before?"

"Of course it is. It's like math. All you're doing is dividing the base object, in this case the rock. If you multiplied it by the same number of times you divided it, you'd have the same rock again. It looks different still, but it's no different from the grapes people use in their wine. The wine doesn't look like a bunch of grapes, but you know they're in there," Connor replied, folding his arms.

The lump of dirt solidified back into the stone, which then vanished only to be replaced by a bottle of wine. In his other hand, Serac conjured up a small cluster of grapes, "Well said. The wine is composed of the grapes, and though you can no longer see them you know that they are there. Before we continue, it is true that one can make wine of grapes, but is it possible to make grapes of wine?"

Connor looked from the grapes in one hand to the wine in the other, then grinned, "So maybe it's not as much like math as I thought."

"Good. Now you have agreed that the stone is still the stone regardless of how many times I break it down."

"Yeah, because they're just smaller and smaller pieces of the same thing."

"Does it follow that if I were to break up a dog in a similar manner, that the dog would still be a dog?"

Connor nodded, "It has different parts like eyes, lungs, fur, and bones, but they're all just bits of the bigger thing, the dog. ...We can do without the visual representation."

"And if I were to break up the bones of the dog?"

"You would find marrow, and some blood, I guess..."

"If I were to break up the marrow and the blood? What would I find then?"

Frowning as if deep in thought, Connor reluctantly said, "Nothing. You couldn't get anything less."

"If we were to break down something so small that we could not even see it anymore, then did we really break it down?" Serac asked quietly, waiting for the answer he knew would come.

"It's impossible. You can't break something apart that small. If we can't see it, it doesn't exist."

Serac raised the bottle of wine and the bunch of grapes, "Then is it true that there are no grapes in this wine?"

Connor's mouth opened just slightly as he tried to figure out what next to say and failed wonderfully.

"We established earlier, through your own words, that simply because something cannot be seen does not mean it is not there. Even the smallest of things are made up of smaller things. The structure of everything goes vastly further than human eyes allow. This is what you must understand."

"Alright, so you're telling me that something as small as a speck of water is made up of something else? It's clear, and it can't get any smaller. How does that work?" The boy asked, thoroughly sure he had flattened Serac's assumptions.

The wine and grapes disappeared, and Serac raised his hand once again, the palm facing the red sky above. Sayo had to get up very close to the hand to see the speckle of water hovering in the air. Apparently Connor did too, because he was right in front of her face with his own, causing her to flit back with an 'eep'.

"Water is made of smaller things, as well. Hydrogen and oxygen, which are common elements found in the air. By combining and compressing them I create water. By duplicating the matter in the air and repeating the process at a rapid pace," A waterfall erupted from above Serac's hand, sweeping Connor away and making Sayo scream in surprise as the valley began to flood, "I can do this."

The thoroughly drenched Connor rose to his feet, the water up to his knees. He was laughing like he had just heard the funniest joke ever told, "That's incredible!" He then laughed even harder when all of the water froze, locking him into place.

"By combining oxygen with nitrogen, and nitrogen with hydrogen, I am able to create a water soluble material known as ammonium nitrate, which if I replicate, amplify, and perform enough times allows me to freeze water through endothermic processes. All of these elements are easily acquirable in nothing but the air once you learn how to do so," The ice quickly melted away and was very soon hot enough that Connor was hopping stupidly to escape it, "Creating an exothermic reaction is just as simple."

As the water around him suddenly vanished into the valley, Connor asked, "Those words, they meant hot and cold, right?"

"They did. Magic is very understandable if the time to truly learn it is taken. The air around you is often your greatest ally, providing a skilled spell caster with the arsenal to ruin armies," Serac snapped his fingers and the air around them got heavy. Sayo looked around, wondering what was going on as the once tall grass now pressed itself to the ground under an unseen weight. Connor was hunched over as well, his mouth working as he fell to a knee.

"When you breathe you release carbon dioxide into the air. By separating the oxygen and carbon I can replicate the carbon in mass, which is heavier than the air as a whole, which is why the grass is pressed down. It also displaces the oxygen in the air, which is what you need to breathe. If such a state is maintained for very long, it results in the asphyxiation of those in range."

Connor doubled over, falling onto his side, red in the face as tears poured down his cheeks.

"Stop it, you're killing him!" Sayo screamed, trying to grab Serac's arm but to no avail.

"An enemy that breathes is an enemy with a horrible weakness," Serac snapped his fingers again and the carbon dispersed.

A second or two later Connor sucked in a huge mouthful of air, gasping and coughing as though he had just resurfaced after a dangerously long dive. Sayo expected the boy to yell at Serac, to threaten him, to storm off, to do something Connor would normally do. All he did was take a moment to collect himself, shoot Serac a big grin and say, "Y-You really are amazing..."

"In all of us," Serac ignored the praise, "There is an energy that allows us to do these things. It is by detaching this energy from ourselves and using it to manipulate that which is around us that magic is performed. This energy is a part of we are, and so the magic itself is like an extension of our being. A person so inclined to do right will find that it is reflected in his magic, because his magic is a part of him. A person inclined to do wrong will also see that of himself reflected in his abilities."

"So good and bad really do have their own sides of magic, then? I thought you said that it was like a tool that was as good as its wielder?"

"It is. I have shown you manipulation of simple elements, which is something any spell caster can accomplish with enough practice. There are spells that some cannot cast, however, due to who they are as a person. A man devoted to good works cannot be an embodiment of darkness," Serac stretched out his hand once again, shadows unfurling from his fingertips and encircling his arms with a low murmur that made Connor's ears pop, "And a child killer cannot be a bastion of light," Serac's other hand began to radiate a crackling white light that seemed to hiss at the darkness nearby.

The young boy looked at both forms of magic; good and evil, mesmerized. Serac could do both! What did that mean?

"There will come a day when you will be able to perform one of these more delicate arts. The decisions you make decide who you are. Let your power be the mirror that shows you who you truly are. And before you ask, no, most people do not know these things, they perform magic instinctually and do not understand it. This is what will make you superior."

"Thank you very much for showing me these things," Connor smiled warmly, tipping his head, "You're a good friend."

Sayo looked from the young Connor to the stoic Serac, marveling at their shared moment. She couldn't help but notice how Serac hadn't quite told Connor how to actually do any of these things, but that was beside the point...

Her eyes popped open and she found herself shuffling down an aisle, apparently being carried by someone. Sayo looked up to find she was in the arms of her ex-teacher, who quickly looked down at her, "We've landed in Amsterdam, so we've got a couple of hours to wait before our plane to Greece kicks off. ...You ok? I didn't think you actually slept..."

"ER, NO! I mean, YES! Plane rides must make me sleepy!" The ghost blurted out, waving her hands around. She looked into Connor's eyes as she spoke, looking for that trace of happiness she had seen in him in the dream, but couldn't find it.

"Wonderful, now hold still. People are going to start thinking I have Parkinson's..."

_-----Author's other note: I finished it, sweet! Now I'm off to the hospital before I get in trouble. Thanks to Eternal-Longing for always lending a hand when I ask, and to Azure for lending a hand, too. Amsterdam should be fun! Thanks for reading...-----_


	20. Window Shopping

_-----Author's note: I do not own Negima, but any other characters and ideas are my own. Enjoy...-----_

Sayo blinked once.

"Aw, don't say that..."

"I'm very sorry, sir."

Sayo blinked twice.

"Well what am I supposed to do until tomorrow? I don't have any reservations or anything, I didn't plan on any expenditure here."

"Not to worry, sir, we've made arrangements with one of the local hotels at a drastically reduced rate. I'm honestly surprised by the bargain, myself..."

Sayo blinked a third time.

"Alright, but why are you just telling me? Why not announce it to everyone at once?"

"Sir, here in Amsterdam we do things a bit more personally! You can follow those directions to the place with ease..."

Sayo blinked for the fourth time, looking from Connor to the young teller who had just informed them that their flight from Amsterdam had been delayed due to the threat of a storm.

The young man raised an eyebrow, "How is it that the airport managed to land this 'drastically' reduced rate on such short notice?"

With a gentle smile, the girl replied, "The owner of the hotel is sisters to the owner of this airport, and he always looks out for his customers!"

Sayo gave an appreciative little clap and a laugh at the good news.

"In a place called De Wallen?"

"Yes, I'm sure an attractive man like yourself will feel right at home there!"

Sayo frowned, grabbing Connor by the arm, "Let's go, Connor-sensei!"

As they quickly hurried off, the old Japanese couple from the plane approached the teller, "Excuse us, we were wondering why-"

"Me sorry, no speak a Japan!" The teller cut them off, hurrying in the opposite direction.

-

The two burst out into the sunlit day in a country neither had ever set foot/ectoplasm on. It didn't feel or look all that special, Connor was sad to say. Same cement beneath his feet, same blue sky above his head. The only difference was the language; he'd be slinging Dutch for a little while. He almost grinned when he recalled Serac showing him how to decipher foreign tongues with magic. Almost. That seemed like such a...WAIT! SAME BLUE SKY? Connor whipped his face upward, glaring at the cloudless sky as if it had offended him terribly.

"I thought the flight was delayed because of a storm?" He growled, ready to spin around and march back in to get a straight answer.

His ghostly compatriot stopped him by grabbing him by the shoulders. She wasn't particularly keen on him running back into the no doubt wide open arms of the cute teller, "W-Wait! She meant a storm in the flight's path, I think, Connor-sensei!"

Shrugging her off as he muttered for her not to call him that, Connor let it go with a sigh. She was probably right. He didn't really like the idea of wasting time as a tourist when he should be continuing the trip to save Asakura, and that was probably raking on his nerves and patience a little. Sayo was right, he was just displeased.

He looked over the paper the woman had handed him her scribbled directions on, complete with a signature he couldn't make out. It was probably from the airport's highest up, like he was told, "According to this we need to hop a train, Casper," He looked around, not surprised to see the station a little ways off, "Come on."

The two started the short walk towards the transportation station and as they did, Connor couldn't help but wonder aloud, "I know De Wallen is famous for something, but I can't remember what..."

"Is it something good?" Sayo asked timidly.

"I'm not sure. You could probably say infamous, too, so it might not be."

"Were there a string of murders that left angry ghosts to haunt the area!? Scaaarryyyyy..." The girl shivered at the thought.

"You're a ghost, Casper, relax. No, I don't think it has anything to do with anything illegal, like murder. ...Oh, wait...This is a different country, so the laws are different! What's illegal in Japan might not be illegal here..."

"You think De Wallen is good for skipping the commercials, then?"

"Skipping the commercials is illegal in Japan?"

"A violation of the country's copyright laws!"

"Wow. Down with TiVo."

Connor got them the tickets for the train and they boarded. It was packed pretty tight, but both felt at home on the train. It wasn't too different from the ones back at Mahora, after all. The train ride was supposed to last about twenty minutes according to the conductor over the speaker. Connor glanced at a clock hanging up above the doors. It read out 5:37, which meant the day would soon become night. He leaned back as Sayo hovered above him, trying her best not to accidentally brush against people and give them chills. What made De Wallen special, he couldn't help but wonder.

He tapped Sayo on the back, and she wistfully spun around to look him in the face. She felt herself heat up when he reached a hand out for her face, and was quick to close her eyes. A slight tap on her forehead jolted her eyes open again, however, "What was that for?" She asked meekly.

"Just imparting a little knowledge, my dead girlfriend. You should be able to understand Dutch, now, so long as you are within a certain distance of me."

Sayo flashed him a big smile, and he shrugged, looking away.

-

"Wow, look at all the pretty red lights, Connor-sensei!"

Connor didn't even tell her to not call him that. At the sight of all the red lights filling the streets he quickly remembered what he knew about De Wallen, and the Netherlands in general. He had actually been right on with his thoughts on legal and illegal differences.

"Look, look!" Sayo flew forward to press her face against a sheet glass window.

Connor, holding his breath, followed her but stopped a few feet behind to look in the window, "Uh, yeah..." He muttered.

"It's like a people zoo!" Sayo had stumbled across one of the many windows containing and displaying a woman in somewhat risque clothing. The ghost tilted her head a little to the side with a dumb grin on her face, "Aw, can we feed her?"

"I think I'd feel better if you rephrased that question, Casper," Connor cleared his throat and looked away as the woman in skintight purple leather grinned and waved politely at him.

"AW, look! She likes you, Connor-sensei! You should go in and pet her!" Sayo started bouncing up and down, absolutely thrilled with the concept of a people zoo. A human petting zoo sounded awesome, too!

"Go in and pet her, uh...I know, how about we don't do that, but tell everyone I did, anyway? Save the time," Connor tried to grab Sayo by the back of her shirt, but the girl sped away to look at this wondrous red place. The window prostitute watched the man in black in confusion as he hurried off in a seemingly random direction.

'_The Netherlands legally allows prostitution! De Wallen is the biggest red light district in Amsterdam! I brought a fourteen-year-old girl to a prostitution hotspot! I must shield her from the selling of booty, or I'll never forgive myself! She's too sweet for this kind of stuff!'_ Connor almost went into spaz mode as he ran after the giddy ghost, who would stop at almost every window to ogle the person it contained. Each one got a different comment that sent terror up and down Connor's spine.

"Connor-sensei, I think this one just told that guy she had a deep throat! Do you think I have a deep throat? We should find out, sometime!"

"Connor-sensei, look! This one's pretending to be a cat-girl! She wants you to scratch her belly!"

"Connor-sensei, I think this one gets more food than the others. What's BBW mean?"

"Connor-sensei, look, look! There are two cat-girls in this one! They're cleaning each other, isn't it cute?"

"Connor-sensei, it's a man! ...I think there's a misprint on the sign! He looks more like six feet, not fourteen inches..."

"Connor-sensei, it's amazing! Look at how flexible she is! She should train Makie-san to be as talented as her!"

"Connor-sensei, this sign says she's now had all her shots and is ready to play! They really do take this zoo seriously!"

"Connor-sensei, this one is offering a really great deal! At least I think it is. Only sixty Euros for a suck and fu-"

"Sayo, NO!"

"Connor-sensei, what's a dominatrix? She's wearing Takane's kind of clothes. Is Takane a dominatrix?"

"Connor-sensei, wow, did you hear that? This one said he wants to fist you. Did you do something bad to him? ...Connor-sensei?"

Connor had, unfortunately for the male prostitute, heard that remark through the glass and found it fit to kick the door down and storm inside, where he dragged the guy out of the window's view and introduced his fist to the man's face. Repeatedly. After the two were well acquainted, Connor stepped back outside where Sayo was patiently waiting, watching the two women with cat ears lick each other provocatively, the ghost seemingly unaware of anything amiss.

"They really do make it look convincing, don't they?" She asked when Connor, an unhealthy red color from anger and embarrassment, stepped up beside her.

He took a look at the women, who, believing they were about to net a sale, began to lick slightly more...intriguing places. Connor and Sayo both tilted their heads at the same time, one smiling happily, the other restraining the smile and telling himself repeatedly they'd definitely seen more use than a freshman's eraser. And that he had a fourteen-year-old girl with him!

"C-Casper, um, I think it's about time we..." Connor trailed off when he felt a thump on his shoulder. With a little trepidation, he turned to find a rather large woman looking down at him, and he up at her multiple chins.

"Look, Connor-sensei! One of the animals got out!" Sayo pointed at the mammoth woman, still grinning broadly.

"C-C-Can I h-help...you?" The man in black stuttered, more terrified of this woman and what she might potentially want of him than he could recall ever being frightened for himself. Ever. His physical well-being never seemed so important as it did, right then.

"I think the question is, big boy, how can we help each other?" The woman asked, most of her jiggling as she spoke.

Connor slowly started to back away as Sayo started to instruct him, "Connor-sensei, play dead! She'll leave you alone if you play dead!"

"I've been watching you, mister tall dark, and handsome," The woman stated, reaching out and grabbing him by the cheeks and giving them a good squeeze, "It's like you stepped out of a cliche fantasy book and straight into our real fantasies!"

Great, she was talking as though she were more than one person, now! "I'm s-sure I'm very masculine and rigid in your fantasies, but..." Connor started, his face still clasped between the woman's hands.

"Oh, I wouldn't say rigid. Stiff, perhaps."

"Sensei, sensei, fetal position!" Sayo cheered as the rotund woman spoke. Before her sentence was even completed, Connor had broken free, spun on his heels, grabbed Sayo in passing, and was running like a eunuch towards a suicide booth. That means fast.

They wound a corner, skidding as they went. The sun was going down, now, and they hadn't exactly located their hotel, just yet. That thought was quick to fall from Connor's immediate attention, however, when he found he was no longer in contact with Sayo. He looked around for a few seconds until he spotted her staring into another window. Approaching her, he called in a loud whisper he hoped only she would pay attention to, "Stop gawking at the goods, Casper!"

"Goods?" Sayo turned around slowly, a finger to her lips, "I was just looking at this...cannabis stuff."

Connor made it over to her, then looked down into the shop's window alongside her, his face paling for what felt like the hundredth time for the day.

"The sign says it helps relax you real good! You should get some, Connor-sensei! You really could use something to help you calm down..."

Connor looked at the weed, then at Sayo, then back down to the weed. After a few seconds he looked back up at Sayo, stared at her for a moment, then looked back down at the weed. He opened his mouth, then shut it, still looking at the drug on display before him. The traffic of people behind them made a nice bustling noise, Sayo had to admit, now that she paid attention to it. Connor looked back at Sayo, still not sure what to say. How could she not tell that was basically marijuana? She MUST have seen someone use something like it during her tenure at Mahora. Hell, he wondered what kinds of drugs half the students in 3-A were on, she had to know what this stuff was.

"It says it's really good stuff! Can I have some of it, then? For a souvenir, maybe?" She turned her biggest, cutest eyes up to Connor, who returned the look with the pale, blank one he currently wore.

"You want me to buy you this weed, here? Is that what you just asked me?"

The ghost looked at the object, confirming that it was, indeed, basically a weed, "Yes! I love this weed! Please get some for me!"

-

And so, not too long later, Connor stood outside the hotel they were supposed to be staying at. An ecstatic ghost to his left, a bag of weed hanging in his hand at his right. He wondered where he went wrong in life.

As the two stood out there in the red, nearly completely set sunlight, Sayo looked up at the name of the hotel which was shining from a sign hanging above the door. It read 'Beneden The Hague'.

While they were reading the sign, the door burst open and the fat woman from before came galloping out, curly blonde hair bouncing about as Connor jumped to the side in fear.

"So you've arrived, dear guest!" She bellowed, somehow able to snag Connor by the arm and begin pulling him into the hotel. Her speed was hidden well by her size, he had misjudged her on that count!

"W-Wait a minute, what are you doing here!?" Connor gasped, trying futilely to pry his arm free from the claws of the woman.

"What am I doing here? Ohohohoho," The woman brought her free hand up to her mouth as she laughed, chins wobbling back and forth obscenely, "I am the owner of this fine hotel, of course! I've every right to be here!"

"S-So you're the sister of the...airport guy...You know, on second thought, I think we should go somewhe-UGH!" He broke off into a grunt when the soft but burly lady tossed him onto one of the chairs in the common room, closing the door behind her, and then punching a few quick commands into the computer at the nearby desk. Sayo floated in after the two, ignoring the door.

The ghost looked around at the deep red carpets, trimmed with gold. The curtains were much the same, though were drawn tightly shut. A large fish tank in the center of the room drew in her eyes, filled with exotic looking crimson fish with billowing tails trailing elegantly behind their slow motions. The white sofas, one of which was occupied by a Connor who just so happened to be sweating bullets, were the only things present which were not a deep red or a dark, polished wood. Connor sneezed loudly, covering his mouth with his sleeve.

"There we go! All set. Your room is on the second floor, number 269," The woman stated pleasantly, now sitting behind the desk and not even glancing at Connor, "Dinner will be served in an hour, just come down here and I'll have you escorted to the dining hall, then. Have a nice stay!"

Connor was on his way up the stairs before she had gotten further than 'dining hall', Sayo close behind. As they made their way up, Connor began to wonder why everything was so quiet. For a hotel in a famous red light district, it certainly seemed abandoned. As Connor wound the corner which contained his room, he found Serac standing in front of the door to room two-sixty-nine. As he approached, the dull voice stated more than asked, "You are aware."

"I am, I am," Connor nodded. The flight being delayed due to a storm that clearly didn't exist, the teller not sharing the news of the 'great' savings (Which turned out to mean free) then pretending not to speak Japanese, the owner of the airport being the brother of the woman who met him on the street and clearly sized him up, who also just so happened to be the owner of the hotel that no one seemed to occupy. He assumed the hotel wasn't really there, that it was simply a powerful illusion spell meant for him. The question of the day was who would go through all of the trouble just to get him there? He didn't recognize the large woman...

"You are in danger," Serac stated simply, "You require assistance."

"Psh, I'm fine. Who's gonna touch me? Fatty downstairs? The only reason I didn't knock her head off was because A. She's a lady, and B. Casper's here. If she tries anything, it'll be game over for her," Now beside Serac in front of his door, Connor twisted the knob and entered, followed by Sayo.

Serac turned, speaking while his back was to Connor, "Know that because the girl is already dead, she can do that which others could not. Know that I am always present," With that, he snapped his fingers and vanished as Connor tossed the door shut.

"Who were you talking to, Connor-sensei?" Sayo asked, confused.

"Don't call me that."

_-----Author's other note: That's the fastest I've updated anything in awhile. It's a little sloppy, please forgive. The name of the hotel 'Beneden The Hague' translates to 'Beneath the Count's Hedge'. The Hague is a city about forty miles away from Amsterdam, if I recall correctly, so that's where I took the name. Also, for those of you who might notice, room 269 is the room where Sakura dragged Naruto in the hospital back in Mating Season. Ah, nostalgia. Anyway, thanks for reading...-----_


	21. Wining And Dining

_-----Author's note: For those who might not recall, as it's been a frightfully long time, we are currently following Connor's trip out of Japan, which has him in Amsterdam, at the moment. He is now staying at the inn owned by the creepy obese lady in the red light district of De Wallen, and Sayo is the proud owner of a bag of weed. If this makes sense to you, then I applaud myself for being insane but making sense. If it does not, then I applaud you for being a very logical character. Either way, I'm gonna be clapping for somebody. I do not own Negima, but any other characters and ideas are my own. Enjoy...-----_

Connor watched in dull semi-interest as Sayo struggled to pick up the weed as best she could, though she never managed to fully lift it from the bag. It was sort of pitiful, but the girl kept trying and the smile never left her face, so he guessed she was used to it. That in itself was sort of pitiful, as well. The light from the fuel lamp resting on the center of the table made flickering shadows of the plant as it floated slightly into the air.

'_If I'm in trouble here, there are four things to watch out for,' _Connor thought, stretched out on the maroon colored bed, _'The first part of any attempted murder is the lure or the set up. I've already walked right into the 'free' hotel, so I've taken the lure. The next thing to watch for is the sucker punch. Since we're about to be served dinner, it's likely a lame poison attempt. Once I skirt around that, the third step would be the 'accident' step. A tumble down the stairs or some weird trap, maybe. Once that fails, it wouldn't be unlikely for them to outright attack me, which is step four, the last step. It's the last because once a warm body tries to do you in, you know something's going on, and likelihood of success plummets because the target's keeping their eyes open. I can't be sure how desperate my enemy is to axe me, though, so I shouldn't take anything for granted...Ah, whatever. I always have a second set of eyes with me,' _He grinned at Sayo when she noticed him observing her, _'Nothing to worry about.'_

"Connor-sensei, when we get back home can we plant this?" Sayo asked sweetly, trying and failing once again to lift the cannabis.

"I think not, Casper."

"But why?"

'Why' was a simple enough question, but he didn't feel like going into the details of legality, so he simply asked, "It's just a dumb weed, why bother?"

"Because you bought it for me."

Sayo wished she had been quicker to hold her tongue. Now she had gone and said something embarrassing! It was all she could do not to stammer off into excuses and return the man's thoughtful gaze. The two looked at one another in silence for several seconds until a knock at the door broke them apart, frightening Sayo bad enough that she actually managed to knock over the fuel lamp beside her.

"Yeah?" Connor called from the bed, of little mind to get up and answer it.

"If it so pleases you, dear guest, dinner is about to be served," A young woman's voice cut through the door and crossed the room to Connor's ears.

Sending a look over to Sayo as he slowly stood up, Connor muttered, "Stay here and make sure no one comes in and messes with anything, alright? I'll be back in twenty," He opened the door and stood there a moment to survey the girl in front of him. She was wearing a maid's uniform, complete with a black ribbon up in her hair. Her apron was white, but the rest of her was done up in jet-black. Her waist-long blonde hair sort of glowed in the light that filled the hall, "Dinner, huh?"

"If it so pleases you," The girl replied sweetly, turning to lead him off.

"I am pleased," Connor grinned, closing the door behind him.

Sayo watched her ex-teacher leave a little jealously, but he had told her to stay, so she would. He wasn't going to stay away too long just to flirt with some pretty maid...right? And what was with the smoke!? It was all...purple. Her ghostly eyes quickly fell upon her beloved weed, which the fuel lamp had ignited into a bundle of smoldering cannabis.

"Oh noooo!" She yelped, swatting at the little fire before it became anything worse. A big fire, for example. She barely managed to brush it, but her cool touch seemed to dampen the flame's spirits, and it died down to nothing after long. Sayo, who was getting a little dizzy from all of the oddly colored smoke, sat down on the floor and commenced crying over the loss of her dear weed.

-

"So this is a family owned hotel, then?" Connor asked as he followed the maid towards the stairs.

"Indeed it is. And might I say, you speak very good Dutch for a foreigner," The maid replied, beginning the descent.

"You may," The man in black smiled, watching the woman's hips sway to and fro as she gracefully descended downwards.

"Where were you taught, if I might be so bold?" The woman stopped at the bottom of the staircase, standing to the side to wait so that Connor might fall into stride with her.

Connor dipped into a weak bow as he twirled a hand, "In the streets, love, where else?"

The two resumed walking, the blonde just a step ahead, "But you've been here only a day, yes?"

"And as a lowly maid working in a family-owned hotel, how would you know that?"

"As this is a family-owned hotel, I was informed of your flight woes by mouth of my uncle as he spoke with my mother."

"So you're the daughter of that woman I met before. Guess the apple falls a bit further from the tree than I thought," Connor couldn't help but think the father must be some sort of sex deity to counteract the butt-ugly genes in the mother to make such an attractive daughter.

"So rude, you are. My mother is a lovely woman, naturally."

"Naturally," Connor yawned, looking around at the red wallpaper filling the hall they were presently traversing.

"So tell me, dear sir, are you traveling alone?" The blonde asked, peeking over her shoulder at the man.

"Interested in keeping me company, love?" Once Connor returned his gaze to front and center, the woman stopped looking at him and set her head straight. This, of course, provided Connor with the perfect angle to hip watch, again.

"Perhaps."

How coy.

In a fluid motion, Connor pinned the woman against the nearest wall, one hand on her hip and the other by her head on the wall. He leaned in close, their foreheads nearly touching, and asked, "You wouldn't be thinking of doing anything bad, now, would you?"

"Sir!" The lady gasped out, "Are you questioning my honor?"

"All honor is questionable under the right circumstances, pet," Connor's hand wrapped around the girl's waist and he pulled her up against him, "Question is whether or not these are the right circumstances to be questioning."

The girl raised her mouth to kiss him, but he inched back so their lips only briefly grazed. Letting out a little grin, Connor backed off a step, "Dinner before dessert, love."

Clearly flustered, the blonde ruffled her dress and resumed leading, speaking in a higher tone than before, "How horribly rude to tease a lady so! So hungry, so hungry!"

Chuckling as he followed, Connor mumbled, "You've no idea." The knife he now possessed was tucked safely into his belt, hidden under his coat. He pulled the black cloth tighter around him, wondering, _'What on earth would she need with such a large knife, I wonder...'_

And so the two now found themselves in a particularly large room with a table just as grand to fill it, lengthwise. While Connor was a fan of tables, particularly big tables, he found that the people sitting at the table interested him a little more than the table itself. There were just about twenty girls on either side of the table, and three chairs at the ends. But not just any girls, mind you! These were young girls, ranging in ages from ten to twenty, all wearing maid's outfits. Some of the aforementioned girls were not just wearing the outfits, they were wearing them. Any guy would understand, and Connor was a guy. He understood. Though the littler girls were cramping his style and/or willingness to look at any of them for fear of misjudging their age.

At the far end of the room rose the fat proprietor of the hotel, and she bid him sit at the end opposite of her, "Our guest arrives. Please, please, do sit and entertain us with your company!"

"It's very nice to meet you," The girls all chorused out for him, "We hope you enjoy your stay!"

The blonde who had escorted him there took a seat at the end, patting the seat beside her, which just so happened to be the middle seat of the three. With a polite smile to the mass of estrogen in front of him, Connor did as he was bid and sat. Time to wine and dine, and he had learned from the best.

"Now that our guest of honor is here, it's time for a very important matter for us to attend," The rotund woman returned to her seat, folding her hands neatly in front of her as she gave a devilish sneer, "You see, everyone comes at a cost, our young male friend. Even this 'free' stay at our lovely inn."

'_Please be an orgy. Please be a...wait, there are children here! ...Please be a selective orgy, please be a selective orgy...'_ Connor groaned a little.

"Isabelle, if you would please," The fat woman raised a hand slightly, at which point the blonde beside Connor reached into her uniform.

The aforementioned girl felt around inside her dress for a few seconds, then laughed a little. More to herself than anyone else.

'_Kind of hard to stab a guy without a knife, huh?' _The man in black grinned inwardly.

"I seem to have misplaced the knife you requested, mother..." Isabelle admitted sheepishly. Connor wondered how the woman way over at the other end of the table could even hear them, yet she seemed perfectly able.

"Well that won't do at all! How is our guest to slice the ham without a proper knife?"

It was at this point that ten things happened in rapid succession. The first was that the fat woman snapped her fingers, to which the room filled with bustling women and girls carrying trays and various other things. They all spoke in unison 'Right away, Ms. Godelieve.' The second was that the once barren table quickly filled up with candles, smoking food, and wine glasses a plenty. The third was that said wine glasses quickly and smoothly filled up with blood red wine. The fourth was that Connor felt a girl's hand on his leg. Not Isabelle's, but the girl on his other side. A glance in her direction let her know that not only did he notice, but he thought it humorous. The fifth was that he indiscretely dropped the knife on the floor at Isabelle's feet. The sixth was that it didn't really matter, as instead of jamming a knife in his back, a cute little girl handed him a knife about as big as her arm. The seventh was that the girl's hand on his leg was starting to get a little adventurous. The eighth was a ridiculously sized ham being placed in front of him, which he was quickly urged to cut. The ninth was the cutting, following by the polite golf clapping by all the girls, whom he was quickly labeling as grossly man-deprived. The tenth was the quick and accurate dispensing of food onto each and every plate, the dismissal of the excess ladies, and the gentle brushing off of the girl's hand on his leg. While technically that was more than ten things, it was, for all intents and purposes, ten things.

"So, Mr. Gavet," Godelieve's voice floated over the table, above the sound of clinking china and hushed talk among the girls, "What is it that brings you to Amsterdam, pray tell?"

Connor, one hand holding a spoon with some peas on it, the other trying rather pathetically to keep the woman's stray hand away from his fly, replied, "I'm actually only stopping here on my way to Athens, though I'm sure you already know as much. Of course, I do appreciate the interest."

"Indeed, we only enjoy hearing you speak, do we not, girls?"

The multitude of ladies were all quick to nod, smile, and chant their agreement. It was creepy. It gave him an odd feeling of fear, confusion, and a sense that if he wasn't careful, he might get molested. A lot.

"So Isabelle here tells me that this is a family-owned and, apparently, operated business," Connor took a slight pause to sip at his wine, which he was confident had no secret ingredients he need worry about, "I can't help but wonder when I see how stunning you all are, and just how many of you there are, are you truly all related?"

Busting out a 'ho, ho, ho,' laugh that would put Ayaka to shame, Godelieve replied, "We are the closest, most loving family one could ever hope to find in this world! Though we are not related by blood, we are family to one another all the same. Our adopted daughters, these, one and all."

"When you say 'our' I assume you mean to imply a Mr. Godelieve, then?"

Isabelle gagged a bit on whatever it was she had been attempting to swallow, quick to reach for her glass to help wash down the offending food.

"Alas, no. Never have we been wed, though we hope to change that in the near future."

It was at this interesting moment in the conversation that the lights decided to flicker.

-

Swaying back and forth as though on a rocking ship, Sayo sifted around in the purple haze that still filled her room. Eyes sporting more glaze than any healthy donut, the dead girl wondered why it was so hard to keep steady. Also, she wondered why she was seeing cows flying around the room. Also, also, she wondered why she had never taken the time to admire how badass her hands were. They were amazing. Also, also, also, she wondered why she could see through them. ...OH, that's right, she was dead.

"OH NO, I'M DEAD!!!" She shrieked, now swirling around the room in a tear-filled panic, "WHAT DO I DO, NOW!? CONNOR-SENSEI!!! WAAAAAAAHHHHH!!!" The lights in the room exploded as she flew through the door and out into the hotel.

-

So intent on staring into Connor's eyes was Godelieve, that if she noticed the flickering of the lights, she did not show as much. Connor glanced away for a second at the disturbance in the light, but returned his attention to the large woman many a yard away from him, "So there is a potential Mr. Godelieve waiting in the wings? And what has this charming gentleman done to fetch your eye?"

A hand raised to cover her mouth as she laughed, her chins wobbling around unpleasantly, Godelieve replied, "Truth be told, I once knew this man before. We were only recently reunited by sheer coincidence. We believe that it is fate for us to be together."

"Fate?" Connor echoed with a little smile, "And the gentleman shares these thoughts?"

"We do not yet know, but we are hopeful."

'_Again with the 'we'. What a nutjob,'_

"And you, dear Connor?" One of the plethora of other girls spoke aloud. Connor wasn't even sure which girl had said it, "Do you have an inclination to marry, soon?"

"Well, I suppose that depends on your meaning, sweetheart. If by 'inclination' you mean a gross aversion to, then yes. I am very inclined to get married soon."

"Perhaps you need only meet the correct woman for you, to change your grim mind set," Godelieve smiled thoughtfully.

Swallowing a mouthful of scalloped potatoes, Connor reached for a napkin, which was used to dab at his lips. He set his fork down, then replied, "There is no correct woman for me, Ms. Godelieve."

Isabelle poured herself a fresh glass of wine, but quickly found that she was in need of another glass. So thirsty, so thirsty.

"So sad to hear such things," Godelieve admitted wearily, getting a taste of her own wine, "Such a young and attractive man as yourself should not hold blessed union in such ill favor."

"But enough of you and I," Connor laughed a little, "What of your beautiful daughters? Surely you have need to employ such guard as to rival the queen's, simply to hold back the gentlemen seeking them. I find it astounding that I am the only guest, at present."

The girls all murmured amongst themselves, flattered and red.

"Alas, in De Wallen, men do not come seeking love. Well," Godelieve frowned a little bit, "The making of, but not love itself."

Connor watched in slight amusement as the girl beside him, whom from this point on will be referred to as Handy, attempted to deliver more ham onto his plate, but had the food wrestled from her by Isabelle, who did the deed herself. Once his plate had been replenished, through no request of his own, the man stated, "Yes, I would imagine that the majority of gentlemen you and your family chance by are less than gentle in their ways. It's sad how we allow our baser instincts to drive us so."

"And would you have us believe then, dear guest, that you, so young and handsome, disinclined to wed, do not allow these baser instincts control of you?"

"Do I strike you as one so morally craven?" He retorted, a grin ghosting his face.

The girls, including Godelieve, fanned themselves and giggled at his words. One of the younger girls then asked, "You know of our family, dear Connor, but what of yours? Is it as large and happy as our own?"

"Surely not," Replied the man, "There are few families that could rival your own for size, dear lady. And while a happy family, I have not seen mine in many a year."

"So young you are! How did you manage for yourself without your family?" Another girl asked.

The sour look on her face said that Godelieve did not approve of this question, but Connor answered it before she could say as much, "It wasn't as difficult as one might think. So long as one has a hand to pull them up should their legs fail."

"And what hand better than that of family?" Godelieve cut in, still smiling though he could tell she did not find herself endeared to this topic.

"Of course," Connor tipped his head a little, "Mother knows best. At any rate, I believe I have eaten my fill, and would excuse myself from your presence with my thanks." Connor inched his chair back, rising to his feet. Handy did not like this, as now she couldn't try and grope him without everyone else seeing.

"Finished so soon?" Godelieve sighed in disappointment, as did most of the other girls, "Very well. We trust the food was to your liking?"

"Very much so, Ms. Godelieve, thank you."

"I will send Isabelle to fetch you once your bath is ready, dear Connor."

"And can I trust such splendid company there as I have enjoyed, here?"

"Morally craven indeed, dear Connor!" The girls laughed, waving him off shyly.

Hands in his pockets as he calmly exited the dining room and retraced his steps back to his room, Connor made sure to keep a collected exterior to contrast his interior. To accurately describe his interior, think of, say, a live mouse getting eaten by a snake. You know that mouse isn't quite dead on the way down, it's going OH SHIT!!! That's what Connor was feeling like.

'_THIS WOMAN WANTS TO MARRY ME! I thought Serac meant I was in physical danger! Of the life or death kind! Not the physical danger of the rape kind! Or of the marital kind! Definitely not the marital kind! I need to find Casper and get the hell out of here!!!'_

He was so flustered that he didn't even notice the walls around him start leaking blood.

-

Sayo flew through the walls between rooms, looking around frantically for Connor to tell him that she was dead, and of course to ask for his advice on what she should do about it! She was scared, but the flying cows that accompanied her kept giving her encouragement such as 'Keep mooooooooving!' The cow with shades kept giving her a thumbs up, so she continually had her courage and resolve restored. She paused when one of the cows stopped in front of a floor mirror to admire herself.

"Come on, Perkins, we need to find Connor-sensei!" The ghost called to her cow companion, floating up behind him.

"Just a sec, milky. I am one fine bovine..." Perkins mumbled aloud, turning to and fro in front of the mirror.

Sayo squealed in terror when she found that she did not reflect in the mirror, "I'M NOT THERE!"

"Of course you ain't, darlin'. You ain't flesh and blood, no more," Perkins replied, still admiring her adorable chunky form.

"NO BLOOD, EITHER!? NOOOOOOOOO!!! CONNOR-SENSEI!!! HELP MEEEEEE!!!"

-

Connor nigh kicked his door down, looking around frantically for Sayo, but coming up with nothing.

"Casper!" He whisper-yelled, "Casper! Where the hell are you!? I told you to stay in here!" And thus was the dilemma of our young friend. Unable to leave without his ghostly charge, unwilling to get raped in the bathtub by a woman three times his weight, and unprepared for the monstrous cloud of purple smoke that filled his room.

_-----Author's other note: YAY UPDATE! Anyway, the cow was named after a restaurant called Perkins. I strongly considered having a cow named Denny's, but decided against it. I do not eat at either, for the curious, I just thought it was funny. Yes, the majority of my jokes are lame, thank you. Thanks for reading...-----_


	22. Lost In A Trash Bag

_-----Author's note: Happy Halloween! Updates this fast because I am ill...I do not own Negima, but any other characters and ideas are my own. Enjoy...-----_

Adela, covered in sweat and blood, ran a sleeve across her beaded forehead as she let out a shuddering groan. Her other hand bore a bloodied hacksaw, which she tossed aside in disdain.

Abigail, in a similar state as her sister, pushed shut the furnace door. Big round tears spilled freely from her little hazel eyes.

"We can never tell mother. Promise me!" Adela demanded, stripping her blood-drenched uniform off.

"B-But..."

"PROMISE ME!"

"I-I...P-P-Promise..."

Somewhat softened by her little sibling's acquiescence, Adela started to help her undress, "Come, now. No tears. This is what's best, after all. Let's go and wash up, and get us some fresh clothes. Tomorrow's a new day."

-

"Casper!" Connor whisper-yelled, "Casper! Where the hell are you!? I told you to stay in here!" And thus was the dilemma of our young friend. Unable to leave without his ghostly charge, unwilling to get raped in the bathtub by a woman three times his weight, and unprepared for the monstrous cloud of purple smoke that filled his room.

"Wonderful. She gets stoned and wanders off. That's just bloody WONDERFUL!" Connor shouted, punching the bed. The next thing he planned on doing was banging his head against the wall until he either busted through or lost himself to a coma. At least the latter would enable him to get the molestation over with without being able to remember it. Would it really be so bad to get raped in his sleep/coma? He might have a crushed pelvis upon waking, but he could always pretend that they had been dropping cinder blocks on him, or something masculine like that. Hey, it sounds cooler than 'I got sleep raped by a chubby Dutch woman'. "I hate De Wallen," He groaned.

Ok, no. No time for discovering new uses for a coma! Time wasn't going to allow for such fanciful wishes! What he needed to do was find Sayo as fast as he possibly could and flee this den of potential debauchery with her safely in tow. He definitely needed to do as much before-

A knock at the door broke his train of thought.

'_OH, CRAP! How can the damn bath be ready so soon!?'_

"Yes?" He called out, pacing back and forth and looking around for some sort of anything to help him. That's right. Some sort of anything.

"If it so pleases you," Isabelle's voice came through the door, "Your bath is ready, dear guest."

Connor opened the door, staring at the blonde a second before grabbing her arm and jerking her into the room. Perhaps a little harder than he had intended to, as the girl spun her way into the room and onto the bed.

"Connor!" The maid gasped, bouncing once before laying there in surprise.

After taking a hair of a second to trace her bare legs up to her ruffled skirt, Connor raised a finger and said, "Have I mentioned how creepy I find it that you all know my name?"

"I know your name, you know my name, we know each other. Though I am sure there is yet more we could come to know of one another," Her hand, much like his eyes had just done, traced her leg up to her skirt, which she inched up a little more.

"There will be no coming, and definitely no knowing of a nature that will lead to said coming. You landing on the bed was a terrible, terrible accident. One that had very positive results for my eyes, but a terrible accident nonetheless."

"You fling me onto a bed, but are to make nothing of it?" The look on Isabelle's face was that of complete and utter confusion. Unfortunately, it quickly turned to surprise, then to a disappointed frown, "Ah, I see. That's how it always is with the cute ones, I hear..."

"Uh, what?" Connor hoped he misunderstood what 'that's how it always is' meant.

"You're gay. I see as much, now."

"WHAT!? I AM NOT!"

"It's really quite obvious, now that I look at it that way. You overcompensate with the coat and bandanna. And look at your hair. No straight man would spend so much time on prepping his hair," Isabelle sighed, pulling her skirt back to the length it should be at, sitting up at the edge of the bed.

"I do NOT overdo my hair! It takes like, five minutes, tops! And I wear the bandanna and coat for something else, NOT because I'm a fruit!"

"It's ok, really. You don't have to lie. No straight man would turn down a situation like this..."

"Bitch, I am not gay. I just have my priorities straight. You're in here because I want to ask you a few questions, not because I'm a rabid bunny," Connor folded his arms, his face set in stone. He did have to admit, though, it did reflect poorly on his socially perceived manhood to turn down a ready to go blonde in a maid's uniform. She was already on the bed, for goodness' sake. No, he was proud of himself. Self control was a wonderful thing. He'd just never mention this to anyone.

"What questions would you ask of me?" Isabelle wondered.

"First off, what the hell is up with your mother? Why does she want to marry me!? I mean, the obvious reason of me being a vision of awesomeness, aside."

With a tilt of her head, Isabelle asked, "You really don't know? Do you not remember her?"

"I think I'd remember crossing paths with a psychopath like her, love."

"Well, apparently you don't. It's odd, she said to expect as much."

Connor dropped down beside the girl, asking, "Alright, so according to her, how do I know her?"

"Do you recall over a year ago, on May 30, going to a seminar on open systems, learning economies, and developmental strategies? It was here in the Netherlands, after all."

Connor nodded, "Yeah, yeah, yeah. In Maastricht. The seminar was given by a Shoe...something."

"Shulin Gu."

"Yeah, that's it. It was to help me get a grasp of the economies and business types here," He neglected to add that it was the Magus Council that secured him a spot there, and supervised most of his stay. Except for the part where he...

"Oh God."

"Do you remember Godelieve, now?" Isabelle asked quietly, raising an eyebrow.

"Oh God."

"I'll take that as a yes."

"She really put on some weight. I mean, she was big before, but damn. Oh...this is bad. She didn't refer to herself as multiple people, before, so she's lost it since I last saw her...She also doesn't have the whole story!" Connor rose to his feet.

Isabelle, too, arose, and moved towards the door, "When she refers to herself as multiple people, she is including all of us."

"That doesn't make any sense! So when she goes 'Will you marry us?' she's asking me to marry ALL of you? Come on, that's ridiculous!" Connor started to follow, but stopped when the blonde shrugged.

"Would it really be so bad?"

That was a very poignant question. One that stopped Connor in his tracks and forced him to think. This thinking brought on a question which he was quick to ask ,"So you're saying that if I marry Godelieve, I will be, in effect, marrying you and all of your sisters?"

"Yes."

"And as such, I will be husband to some obscure and reckless number of attractive women? And only the one whom I deem less than attractive?"

"Yes."

"...And all of you are ok with that?"

"Of course. We are all one. What one of us possesses is the same as what we all possess. Should you marry one of us, you in turn marry all of us."

The two stood there for several seconds. What do you say to that? This lot was clearly crazy. On the other hand, the majority of them were very attractive and crazy. Not to mention of an age that didn't make him feel guilty, like Ku Fei or Asakura. Oh...that sealed the deal right there. Asakura was the most important thing right now, how could he let her slip his mind for even a second? He wasn't in Amsterdam of his own volition. He should be on a plane right now, not contemplating marrying innumerable women.

Isabelle exited the room, followed by Connor. The two started down the hallway towards the stairs once again. He asked, "So is that why you're all so close-knit? Why she didn't like the talk of people outside the family? I assumed you were all man-deprived, but I didn't get why."

"Should one of us fall in love and wish to marry, that man would become all of our husbands. Such is the way of things. This being the case, we are not allowed outside of the hotel. She wants to be able to choose a husband for us, herself. To choose one for her," Isabelle explained as the two started down the stairs.

"That sounds really not legal."

"The sad fact of it is, everything becomes legal with a touch of money and a contract here and there. She picked up orphans and desperate girls of all sorts, be it from the street or the orphanage. We all signed our assent to the terms she gave. We just wanted a place to call home, somewhere warm where we might have hot food and people to love..."

Holding in the 'cry me a river' mentality, Connor asked further, "Alright, fine. Even if she somehow managed to make this whole thing legit, which I still strongly doubt, why? Why do all of this? It makes no sense at all."

"Oh, it makes lots of sense, actually. She loves you, for one."

Now at the bottom of the stairs, Connor went over to a wall to support himself and shake his head, "Ugh, let's not go there."

"But she does."

"Well, sad to say, I don't believe I'll ever be reciprocating those feelings."

"And that's why it makes so much sense. She knows you don't love her. That's why she went through all of this trouble."

Eyes widening at the revelation, Connor groaned, "You mean...she's using you girls as...she's using you to sweeten the deal? By marrying her, I get all of you? That's what this is all about!?"

"Yes, I am glad you finally understand. You think I would flaunt myself off to just any man other than he who was to be my husband? For shame!" Isabelle remained at the bottom of the stairs, watching Connor to see what he would do.

"Whoa, hey, I did not say yes! And how can you even accept this? You don't know me! How can you marry someone you don't even know? What the hell's wrong with you?"

"I will admit, I was hesitant at first. Marrying a complete stranger was a scary thought, but at least you're handsome. If mother loves you...then you must be a good man, too," Turning red, she looked away.

"Oh, sweet mother of God. Are you completely overlooking the whole incest factor, here? If I marry her, then I'm your step-father! I would be married to my step-daughters! Even the ten-year-old ones!"

"She wasn't sure if you were a lolicon, she just wanted to be safe."

Connor's hand slipped and he stumbled off of the wall. He managed to steady himself before he fell, however. "Do I look like a pedophile, to you!?"

"You look like a homosexual, to me. But I'm sure we can break you of that."

He thought for a moment that he had blown a blood vessel and blacked out due to an unspeakable rage those words inspired in him, but the lights had just gone out.

-

Sayo, under the realization that she was no longer of flesh and blood, had just realized that she probably couldn't see without eyes. The lights took this as a sign to short circuit. So, with her eyes clenched shut, Sayo continued to fly around the second floor of the hotel, crying out for Connor. The cows in tow.

-

"I'm never going to accept. Not only is the proposal itself ludicrous, but I would never want to be the one man for all of you girls. That's incredibly unfair to all of you. You should be able to be with who you want, to make that choice for yourself. She's made slaves of all of you."

Isabelle, still leading Connor to the washroom, replied through the shadows, "Slaves we may be, but happy and loved. Can you say the same?"

The man made sure to stay behind Isabelle just in case she tried anything funny in the dark. The candle she held aloft in front of her created an orb of light that only allowed him to see her outline, swaying back and forth as she walked. Through a grimace he replied, "I'd rather be miserable and free than placated and trapped."

"Why do you find our offer so unsettling? If the concept of unfaithfulness is troubling you, be reminded that we all know of one another. There is no secret being kept, and no need for shame."

"Just because something's out in the open doesn't mean there isn't a call for shame, love."

"If you so choose, you can only touch Godelieve, or Adela, or Danielle, or myself, or even none of us. We are not forcing you into a never-ending sex frenzy, jumping from one girl to another."

"Yet you're comfortable using the word 'forcing'. Last I heard, marriage wasn't about manipulation and control. ...Wasn't supposed to be about manipulation and control, anyway. I already told you I will not accept, so you're wasting your breath."

Isabelle was silent for a moment to collect her thoughts. The question the action brought to her mind was a rather plain one. It seemed the root of the problem, so she asked, "Then there is someone else?"

"We almost there?"

"Godelieve will not allow you leave of the hotel. She would sooner kill you then let you abandon her a second time."

"Well, I've lived a good life."

"You can't yet be twenty!"

"I said good, not long."

Isabelle's lips thinned to a line in frustration. She led him around yet another corner. The hotel seemed much larger inside than it did outside, Connor had to admit.

"Why is it that you are so stubborn?" The blonde asked her company.

Connor slid his hands into his pockets, shrugging, "I could ask you the same thing, darling. What could have been so bad that in retrospect, you prefer to live a life with a man you don't love?"

"I could come to love you in time."

The man scoffed, "We both know that to be a lie. You're still immature enough to think that love is an 'at first sight' kind of deal. I saw you at the dinner table. You nearly choked when the topic turned to marriage. You like me about as much as I like you."

"And how much is that, pray tell?"

"You're nice to look at, but I wouldn't be all that upset to find you under a bus."

"Charming," The girl growled.

"Aren't I just? By the way, nice job avoiding the whole 'what was so bad before this' question. Not a fan of the back-story, are we?" Connor sighed, but kept as alert as ever.

"Here we are."

-

Left to his own measures once having been shown into the washroom, Connor was somewhat reluctant to undress. Unluckily for him, Isabelle had just about stripped him down to his boxers as though she had done it a million times. He found himself without the guns, his sword, his coat, or even his bandanna. The girl was now gone with his things, leaving him feeling rather vulnerable and naked, despite the boxers she had graciously allowed him. He decided it would be safest to keep them on, and slipped into the tub without removing them.

The tan tiles which made up the large pool-like bath were smooth to the touch, lighter and darker shades swirled into them to create a pretty pattern on each one, each unique. Air vents lined the floor in front of the counter, letting warm air into the room. Part of him expected to hear the Jaws theme music start and see the bubbles in front of him part as Godelieve approached him from beneath the water. As far as he could tell, however, he was completely alone. He began to lather himself up with a beige-colored bar of soap, though his eyes were always on the watch for some sort of danger.

-

"_Yet you're comfortable using the word 'forcing'. Last I heard, marriage wasn't about manipulation and control. ...Wasn't __supposed__ to be about manipulation and control, anyway. I already told you I will not accept, so you're wasting your breath."_

Isabelle clicked off the tape recorder, averting the rather displeased face of Godelieve. Tears were in her eyes, and her fists were quivering in disappointment and rage.

"Oh no..." Adela murmured, hugging herself, "Father Connor doesn't like us, after all?"

Isabelle ignored the redhead, but still would not look at her mother, "So what would you have us do with him?"

With a shuddering sigh, the rotund woman stated, "I would sooner he die near me than live and put distance between us. Abigail," A young pigtailed brunette approached at her mother's call, "Drown him."

-

Connor wobbled around in the water as jets started to shoot around beneath him, "Whoa, I didn't know it had bubble jets...I also didn't mean to turn them on by doing absolutely nothing..." A few seconds went by before the water started to spill over the edges of the bath. A few seconds later and it had glossed the entire floor. The jets showed no sign of stopping, either. The sound of metal sliding over metal as the air vents closed up told Connor it must be time to get out.

He did as much, grabbing a towel and wrapping it around his waist. He grabbed the door handle and tried to twist it open, but to no avail. He shook and rattled the knob violently, but the door would not budge at all. The water was now up above his ankles, still rising. The door seemed to be airtight, as well, so no water was escaping. "Oh, isn't this just PERFECT! HEY! ISABELLE!" He shouted, banging on the door, "SOMEONE! LET ME OUT OF HERE!"

-

Abigail stood outside the door, hanging her head for shame at what she had done. Now that nice man was going to drown and die. It was sad, but it was for mother, after all. Isabelle, beside her, looked more distraught, however.

"Are you alright, sister?" The younger one asked.

"I am fine, Abby, thank you. I just wonder if this was not too hasty an action. Mother is acting on blind emotion," The blonde replied, pacing back and forth. The man's screaming inside the washroom wasn't helping her feel any better.

"It's sad, but this is what she wants. You know what she'll do to us if we don't listen, Izzy...It's best this way..."

Isabelle nodded, "Yes, I know. You stand watch out here. I'm going to go and help Elisah clean some of that dreadful red fungus off of the wall. She swears it smells just like blood..." With the go ahead nod from Abigail, the woman turned tail and marched off down the hall. Once around a corner, she kicked off into a sprint.

-

"HEEEEEEEEYYYYYYYYY!!!" Connor stopped pounding on the door, fearing no one had any mind to help him. The water was above his waist by this point, constantly on the rise. He sloshed over to the windows. He tried them all, but not one would budge for him even an inch. He then tried breaking through them with his fists, but all he managed was to hurt himself.

His hand bleeding and now treading water, Connor made his way over to the towels and snatched the remaining two he could see. He returned to the center of the room and swam down into the tub, dragging the towels down with him. In desperation he tried to force the cloths down into the jets to plug them up, but couldn't get them down against the current. The rushing water beat him in the end, tearing the towels from his grip and sending them spinning back up to the surface.

The candles had long since been extinguished, and the room was now more than halfway full of water. His sword was gone, without which he couldn't even use magic. Surrounded by choppy water and darkness, unable to use magic, and hope of escape rapidly disappearing, fear started to set in.

'_If I die...who'll save Asakura?'_

He took a gasp of damp air as he put his hands to the ceiling, his nose close to touching the top of the room.

'_I'll never get to apologize to Ku Fei...'_

"SERAC!" He shouted, his mouth filling up with water as he bobbed downwards. He spat out the liquid, "SERAC!"

'_I'll never get the chance to plant a stupid weed with Sayo...'_

The water that promised nothing less than death made it to the ceiling as Connor sucked in his last breath, floating down to the middle of the inundated room.

-

Sayo jerked when she heard Connor's voice, screaming for Serac, "CONNOR-SENSEI! I'M DEEEAAAD!" She wailed, speeding in the direction of the cries. Her frenzied rush led her to a small girl with pigtails standing outside a door.

-

Weird. Everything was soft and tranquil. The water felt nice on his skin, the pressure from the jets was still whooshing around, and it felt gentle to him. A candle floated by in front of his eyes, twisting a bit in the current. It was peaceful. Connor always figured his death would be a bit bloodier and more hectic than this. Drowning had never really crossed his mind as a real way he could die. Unless someone had him by the hair and was holding him underwater, anyway. In fact, it almost seemed nice.

He wasn't sure how long she had been there, but Sayo was now in front of him, looking around in confusion. She settled her eyes onto his, and he heard her ask, "What's happening?"

"_You are in danger. You require assistance. Know that because the girl is already dead, she can do that which others could not. Know that I am always present."_

Things were starting to get hazy for Connor, but he now understood what Serac had meant.

A light came forth from the base of the bath. The two looked down to find a magical circle below them, the light filtering up through the water in rippling beams. Exhausting what strength he had left, he grabbed the ghost by the shoulders and pulled her into him, pressing his lips against her own.

The girl made an 'eep' sound, but went limp to the kiss. She had gone from Stoned hard to I Can't Believe It's Not Sayo, butter soft. The light peaked, then vanished, leaving them both in near complete darkness. Moonlight filtering through the window their only aid.

"Oo sumthin..." Connor choked out the last of his air, staring into Sayo's eyes. The bubbles from his mouth rose up and vanished from the moonlight.

The ghost looked around in shock, but it didn't seem there was anything she could do. She needed to go get help! "I'll be right back!" She promised, fleeing the washroom and nearly tackling the pigtailed girl. In fact, she would have if she hadn't gone straight through her.

The brunette shivered, "I guess that means it's done...time to fetch mother..." Abigail swallowed hard and trotted off to find her mother.

"Wait, come back!" Sayo called after her, "He's gonna drown! Please, save him! I...I can't help him..."

"SAYO!"

The ghost girl swung her hanging head up to stare straight into Carlos' shades, and the flying, talking cow stared right back at her.

"You have to do this. You can save him," The cow stated forcefully, sticking a cigarette into its mouth.

"But how!? What do I do, Carlos?"

"It's like what Serac said. You just have to want it bad enough."

"How do you know about Serac?" Sayo asked, a tear sliding down her cheek.

"Because, little girl," Carlos gave her a hooves up, "I'm just a figment of your imagination."

The cow vanished, and a sharp tingle went through Sayo like electricity through a wire, and she found herself back in the washroom. Frantically, she looked around for her teacher, but couldn't find him anywhere. The window opened up, and water began to spill out. A flash of yellow caught her eye.

-

Connor spilled to the floor outside the washroom, coughing up water and sucking in air as deep as he could. He rolled onto his back, spluttering liquid all over the place. Sayo peeked her head out through the door and looked at him, astonished, "How did you get out here?"

A voice in the back of Connor's head that goes by the name of Common Sense was screaming at him to get up and leave as fast and discreetly as he could, and he listened, grabbing Sayo by the hair on the way.

-

Isabelle sped out through the front door and around to the back, where a rather small utilities shed awaited her. She entered with nothing and left with a ladder a split second later. With the new tool at her disposal, the blonde trotted over to where water was running down the side of the house, stemming from the edges of the windows. She now understood why they needed fiberglass windows, unfortunately.

'_Mother is wrong to do this, Connor was right! I'll not be her slave should this be the outcome!'_

She propped the ladder against the wall beneath the windows, scaling it as quickly as she could without snaring her dress. In a matter of seconds, she was up beneath one of the windows. It took all of the strength she could muster in her fingers to undo the latch locking the window, which let loose a torrent of water. She would have cascaded with the liquid to the ground had she not managed to clutch onto the windowsill until the flood was weak enough to pull herself up and into the washroom.

"Connor! Where are you!?" She called, wading through the room, feeling around for him in the chest-deep, black water. That was when the most horrific sound she had ever heard reached her ears. The sound of a window slamming shut, followed by the click of a latch.

She whipped around and rushed towards the closed window. Terror practically petrified her as she found it would not respond to her pushes. She pressed herself against the window and pushed as hard as she could, the side of her face even pressed in the attempt. Nothing. Movement down below caught her eye as the water continued to rise. A figure in a robe was walking away with her ladder!

"HEEEYYY!!!" She shrieked, swinging her fists into the fiberglass, "COME BAAAAAACK!"

The person paid her no heed, and was soon out of her sight.

"ABIGAIL!" She screamed, "I'M TRAPPED IN HERE!" She kicked over to the door, which was now completely under water. She had about a foot of air left, "ABIGAIL!!! STOP THE WATER! OPEN THE DOOR!!!"

-

"It's done, mama," Abigail stated quietly, wiping her face dry.

"...Is it?" Godelieve whispered, rising from her bed, "Adela?"

The redheaded girl had been sitting at the bedside, apparently consoling her mother. She rose at the call, "Yes?"

"It's time," She motioned for the two girls to follow, which they did. The trio, quiet as a funeral procession, marched through the halls towards the washroom. Abigail didn't have the heart to ask what the trash bag her sister was carrying was for. Once they stopped outside of the washroom, she was to find out, however.

Godelieve moved aside the picture of a swan hanging by the door and flipped the switch. The hum of the water jets stopped, and the sound of the grates in the floor sliding open replaced them. They waited in silence as the water drained through the vents. Only when the sound of water was completely gone did Godelieve reach fort he door, and it was only then that she realized she could not open it.

"Adela, I cannot bear to see him passed."

The redhead nodded weakly, "You would have I, in your stead?"

"Yes. Please, take the body to the boiler room...to the boiler room, and dispose of it."

"Mama?"

"Mother, you surely can't mean for me to-"

"Tomorrow," The large woman interjected, "You and your sisters are free to leave the hotel as you please. You may find a suitor of your own choosing. I am nullifying the contracts you signed. Please, do this for me, Adela, for I cannot."

Freedom was being offered to them. This one grizzly deed would forever rid them of the man whom their mother had been so obsessed with, and they would be free of those wretched contracts which bound them all to one man.

"Very well," Adela reached for the doorknob, and Godelieve turned around so as to save herself the sight. The girl pulled the door open, immediately covering Abigail's mouth, lest the little girl's wails alert Godelieve to something being amiss. The small girl rushed into the room and threw herself down upon the body.

Godelieve waited in awful suspense as the sounds of Abigail crying and Adela stuffing something into the big black trash bag filled her ears. This moment seemed louder than any construction site, or gun range. Each crinkle of the bag was like a bomb going off in her ears. The last sound was off Adela dragging the body out of the washroom, followed by a sobbing Abigail. Sure enough, the trash bag was full.

"It might not fit into the furnace..." She stated, swallowing hard.

"Then make it fit," Godelieve replied, turning and walking away, wiping at her own tears.

-

Connor, along with his ghostly compatriot Sayo, hurried down the streets of De Wallen towards the train station. The trains were likely all done for the night, but he would sleep outside rather than go inside ANY other building in the De Wallen district. They would catch a train back to the airport, and then board their flight due that afternoon. All he had to do was put up an illusion to disguise himself. Sayo could get on just fine, and...

"My stuff! I left it back at the hotel!" Connor groaned, smacking himself on the forehead, "I can't do magic without my sword, so I can't disguise myself!" He spun around to run back and make a desperate attempt at retrieving his things, but fell back onto his butt when he found that Serac was directly behind him.

"Yes, you really should take better care of that," The Wanderer stated, dropping Connor's things onto the ground in front of him, "We would not want you to lose them."

"NOW YOU DECIDE TO HELP!" Connor roared, rising to his feet and going nose to nose with his anti-friend, "Where the hell were you!?"

"I had a ladder to put away," Serac replied glumly, unmoving.

"And just what does that mean? Some more riddles for me? If you wanted me to get a teammate thing with Casper-"

"A Pactio," Serac corrected his acquaintance.

"A what-chio?" Sayo butted in.

"Oh, crap, is she gonna be ok?" Connor asked, spinning on his heels. He grabbed Sayo by the waist and held her aloft. ...More aloft then she had been a second ago, "Do you feel alright? Nauseous, dizzy, lightheaded, heartburn, anything?"

"What's heartburn?" Sayo asked, blushing, "I think I might have that one..."

"As I said," Serac readied to repeated himself, "As the girl is already dead, she can do what others could not."

The man without a shirt pulled Sayo into a big hug, "You saved me, holy crap. I owe you big time, Casper. We're an official team, now, baby."

"We weren't a team before?" Sayo asked, eyes watering up, "I don't even remember what happened!"

"Uh, what?"

Sayo nodded, "I remember...talking to a cow...and looking in a mirror, but nothing else!"

Connor turned to Serac, "Oh, God, did I ruin her memory?"

"She was under the influence."

Connor mouthed the word 'Oh', and turned to his new partner, "You are now my partner. It's your job to protect me with whatever magical thingy you got from the magic circle. You can't remember what happened because of...the emotional trauma brought on from the loss of your weed. So, what magic thing DID you get that saved me, back there?"

"I miss Carlos..." Sayo whimpered.

"So," Connor, again, turned to Serac, "What magic thing DID she get that saved me, back there?"

"A ring," The Wanderer replied, "The two of you switch places when she wills it. She just has to want it bad enough." He turned to walk away, but Connor stopped him with a question.

"Will Isabelle ever get out of there?"

"You need not concern yourself with the girl," Serac replied, not stopping.

"Is she going to be alright?" He asked a little louder.

"You have done your part in her existence. Tonight was a defining night in her life." With those words, he snapped his fingers and disappeared.

Connor slung his coat over his shoulders, then set to work on tying his bandanna, "Good."

-

Adela, covered in sweat and blood, ran a sleeve across her beaded forehead as she let out a shuddering groan. Her other hand bore a bloodied hacksaw, which she tossed aside in disdain.

Abigail, in a similar state as her sister, pushed shut the furnace door. Big round tears spilled freely from her little hazel eyes.

"We can never tell mother."

_-----Author's other note: And now we are finally done in Amsterdam. Some things:_

_1. The part where Connor and Isabelle are talking and Connor makes a comment about his life being good, not long is a bit from the Nickelodeon show, The Fairly Oddparents. I saw it so long ago, but I always loved the humor and that joke stuck with me._

_2. Sayo is now Connor's partner. The details of this will be ironed out in the near future._

_3. They are now back en route to Athens, and there will be no more interruptions until they arrive there._

_4. For the one or two of you out there who just might not get it, because there are always a couple of you, Isabelle was the one who drowned and was cut up to be thrown into the furnace. Wow, that sounds horrible when I say it like that._

_5. I plan to show what happened between Godelieve and Connor in a flashback/dream event with Sayo, but that won't be for awhile. That's why I left it vague, so if she ever gets that far into his history, we'll all be like 'Oh! That's what happened!'._

_6. Mission status... ...Wait, wrong story..._

_Thanks for reading...-----_


	23. Euthyphro

_-----Author's note: Happy pre-Thanksgiving! Hope you lot that celebrate it have a good time with family and friends, and all that fun stuff. I do not own Negima, but any other characters and ideas are my own. Enjoy...-----_

"It's been three days, Connor-sensei..."

"Don't call me that."

"Don't try and change the subject..."

Sayo watched as her partner stumbled into their room, threw his coat onto a chair, and fell face first onto their bed. His right hand was still bandaged up from his injuring it while trying to escape the flooding room, back in the hotel, Beneden The Hague. She noticed a dark, purple bruise on his left arm, "I'm not changing the subject," He stated, face pressed into the mattress, "I know it's been three days. I know I still haven't found anything out. I don't need you to remind me."

Sayo laid down across his back so they made a big plus sign, "That's not what I meant. You look terrible."

"If by 'terrible' you mean 'sexified' you would be correct, and thank you."

"Actually, your eyes look like those bands on MTV..."

Silence.

The room they were in was green. Green carpet, green bed sheets, green pillows, green wallpaper. Connor wondered if maybe the air in the room was tinted green, sometimes. He also wondered why anyone would make an entire room green. It was as though any other colors introduced were quickly enveloped by the green and transformed to some sort of green, themselves. Even his coat, in this room, appeared to be a very dark pine color, rather than black. ...Wow, maybe Sayo was right.

"I can't...don't want to go to sleep..."

"You haven't really been trying very hard," Sayo pointed out, still across him, "You stay out all night and then you stay with me all day."

Face still firmly embedded in the mattress, Connor raised a finger and replied, "The bars are empty until nighttime, my ghostly lover. I'm not gonna find Bard in the middle of the day. No Bard, no lead, no grave, no soul. I have to stay out all night."

"Serac was awfully vague about who you needed to find, though..."

"That's basically how he is."

Sayo lifted herself from Connor's back, propping herself up on her knees/tail and puffing out her chest. She frowned, talking in a deep, throaty voice, "Find the bard, he will aid you in your search!"

Laughing, Connor pulled his face from the bed to get some fresh air. He swung around so that his legs hung over the edge of the mattress, kicking Sayo's bottom out from under her. He caught her and pulled the yelping girl onto his lap, "Wonderful Serac impression, lover. Now, are you ready for another go?"

Sayo blushed up slightly at their current close proximity. The look in his eyes wasn't much reason for her to stop blushing, either, "M-More? But I'm so tired from last time..."

"Hm? So...you don't like doing it with me?"

"N-No, that's...that's not what I meant. I just mean I'm exhausted. Aren't you?"

Connor ran his hand through Sayo's icy, shimmery hair as he spoke, "Some things are worth doing, no matter how damn tired you are. I consider this one very, very worth doing."

"But you're so rough..." Sayo arced her head and closed her eyes, savoring the feel of his hand easing through her hair.

The man in black brought his lips to Sayo's forehead in an encouraging kiss. He liked the way she felt to his every touch. At first he had considered it cold and awkward, but now it felt more like a cool breeze. Or, in the case of a kiss, catching that first big snowflake on your tongue. A memory he always grinned at. As his lips left her, causing her to shiver slightly, he whispered, "I'm only as rough as I think you can handle."

Sayo grinned awkwardly, "Y-You just like going fast and rough for the end result..."

"Society's beat it into my head, lover. Focus on the result, not on the process. So come on, you up for it?"

"First..." Sayo opened her eyes, looking into Connor's, "C-Can I h-have..."

Connor fell back, pulling Sayo with him. The two, now beside one another on the bed, each looked into the eyes of the other. Connor smiled wryly, "There's my girl."

-

"C-Connor-sensei..."

"Ha...I can't focus when you call me that..."

The two were both speaking in-between ragged breaths. Connor was damp with sweat, and Sayo appeared to be moist in her own ghostly way.

"It's t-too hard..."

"Only as hard as I think you can handle," Connor chuckled.

"What do you need...need to focus on, anyway?"

"T-Trust me, this takes a lot of focus. And more than a little willpower."

"Are you thinking...Are you thinking about someone else?"

"Come on...I'm almost to the breaking point, here."

-

Sayo opened her mouth wide, closing her eyes.

"R-Ready?" Connor grunted from in front of her.

His ghostly lover smiled just a little, though she said nothing and kept her eyes closed and mouth open.

"Uh, why do you have your eyes closed? And why are you holding your hair back?"

"I don't want you to get any in my hair. Definitely not my eyes...It'll burn like crazy..."

"Come on, my aim isn't that bad..."

"That's what you said last time..."

"I got a little shaky, geez, can you blame me?"

Sayo shook her head, closing her eyes and opening her mouth for a second time, eagerly awaiting the treat to come.

"Remember, if you don't like the taste you can just spit it out..." Connor stated, his hand bringing the iron-hard tool up close to Sayo's welcoming mouth.

"You said that last time, too," The ghost laughed. A second later, the thick, warm liquid plopped into her mouth, along with a shot of it on her cheek.

"Ha, oops..."

-

"I know it doesn't mean much to you...But thanks for staying with me, during the day."

"Not at all, Casper. It means a lot to me."

The two were once again to be found in the hotel room, lying on the bed and staring up at the ceiling. Connor's right arm was under Sayo, who was nestled in beside him.

"Besides," He added, "Look at everything we got in, today. I'd say this was a day well spent. I know I feel good about it, anyway."

"Yeah..." Sayo grinned, "Connor-sensei, earlier you said that you didn't want to sleep..."

"I did. ...Stop calling me that, damn."

"Why is that?"

"You know what I'd rather talk about?" Connor, being the master conversationalist that he was, decided to change the subject, "How is it that you can eat stuff, but not go to the bathroom?"

"Wh-What do you mean?"

"You know what I mean. We put some stuff in you, today. Is it gonna come back out, or what?"

Sayo was thoughtful for a second, then said, "I think it already came back out..."

Connor was thoughtful for a second, then said, "That's interesting...and kind of weird."

"It would be more weird if it stayed in there..."

"Ha, maybe. Anyway, how did you like it? I forgot to ask, earlier, what with getting it all over your face, and stuff. ...Yeah, sorry about that."

"Yeah, you're really messy, Connor-sensei. At least you didn't get it in my hair, this time."

With a slightly abashed laugh, Connor apologized for that little mishap, too.

"It was better this time, though. A lot less salty than the time before."

"Yeah?"

"Uh huh, this time it was sweeter. I'd eat it, again. It's really amazing to be able to taste things, after so long. I have you to thank for it, too! You're a really good friend, Connor-sensei."

Giving the snuggly ghost beside him a little squeeze, Connor replied, "You don't need to thank me for a thing, Casper. I should be thanking you."

"What for?"

"For being here every time I come back. It's nice to have someone waiting for you. I know it sounds corny."

Sayo shook her head, "It sounds nice. I'd rather come back with you, though, than wait for you."

"We've been over this, Casper."

"I don't really see how I could get in the way, since I'm invisible and no one can even touch me besides you..." The girl pouted.

"You just gotta trust me on this one," Connor let out a soft sigh. There was no real reason he could give her. If he up and said 'I don't want you to see some of the things I'm going to do', that basically told her he was doing some unsavory things.

"Is it dangerous?"

Connor brought his left arm over his chest to pat Sayo on the head, "Not in the least."

"Ok..." She whispered, eyeing the wide, purple strip on his exposed upper arm. _'But then how did you get that horrible bruise on your arm?'_ He retracted his arm, and then the mark was out of her line of sight, "Connor-sensei, do you think we'll get to keep doing things like this?"

"Doing things like what?"

"Like...what we did today?"

"What we did today? Well, let's break it down: First we went to the city's edge and trained with your new artifact. Then, we went out and ate lunch. I basically felt like a dumbass, talking to an empty seat and feeding someone who no one else could see."

-

A very confused busboy looked down at the spoonfuls of hot fudge on the seat before him, "Wow, that dude in the coat was a serious nutjob."

-

"And then we trained a little more, and then we came back here. Yep, I can see us doing that plenty more in the future."

Sayo laughed, "You probably did look kind of silly, feeding the air!"

"Yeah, and I have you to thank for that, Lady Air."

"Thanks for doing it, though. It made me feel special..."

"Made YOU feel special? I couldn't even get it all to fall in your mouth, ha, ha...It made ME feel special, if you know what I'm saying."

Sayo sat up, which prompted Connor to do likewise, "But I mean it. I've watched so many people over the years...get to do those things. But never me...Now I know what they must have felt like. Thanks for showing me, really," She set her head on his shoulder and fell silent.

Connor sighed, closing his eyes.

_His knuckles cracked, but not as loudly as the jaw they connected with. The man's head whipped around as he plummeted to the cold cement. The downed man tried to push himself up, but an unforgiving boot coming down on his head didn't allow for it. _

_Alexius flinched and looked away as his guard's face collided hard with the earth, the sound of something wet cracking and splattering before him turning him green. He reached into his coat and pulled out his handgun, which he pointed at his assaulter, "One more move and I'll blow your goddamn head off!"_

"_Right, and if I just stand here, what happens then?" Connor asked half-heartedly, shaking his leg to get some of the blood off of his boot, "You gonna buy me a beer and we talk things out like pals?"_

"_Who the hell are you, first off? Did Elias send you?" Alexius growled, trying to sound more intimidating then he looked. Granted, anyone could look intimidating with a gun in their hands, but he was a little on the tiny side, and his hands were shaking rather noticeably._

"_I honestly don't know who that is and, quite frankly, I don't give a shit," Connor raised both arms in a shrug, taking a step towards his target._

_A shot rang out, but the bullet whizzed harmlessly by its intended target, who lunged for the weapon. Alexius, cursing his nerves, struggled briefly with the man in black before the weapon came free of his grasp. Another shot exploded in his ears, this bullet searing through his shin and shattering his tibia. The wounded man shrieked as he began to fall backwards, but was quickly silenced as a kick landed square on his jaw, flinging him down._

_Alexius, weeping and attempting to crawl away, began to shout curses at his attacker, and even call for help. Connor paused to look around. They were currently in an abandoned lot by an equally abandoned warehouse. Ragged and rusty fences were up around the perimeter, but they were of very little use, it seemed. The ground was breaking apart from all the weeds and grass growing through the cement, and the scent of blood was getting stronger as more of it spilled from the two men with him. The closest civilization was well out of earshot, across a small body of water beyond the warehouse. _

"_No one's gonna hear you way out here. Tell me what I want to know, and I won't kill you. Sounds fair enough, doesn't it? Now, Hesiod tells me that-"_

"_Hesiod?" Alexius interrupted, "That moron bartender!? He sent you after me!? I'll kill the man!"_

"_Hesiod tells me that you know where I can find the guy who goes by Bard."_

"_Bard? I...I do not know who you speak of! Hesiod lies!" Alexius shouted, tears still meandering down his cheeks because of the wound in his leg._

"_You see the muscle back there on the ground?" Connor motioned to the dead man on the ground a few yards back, "You're not seeming much more valuable than him, at the moment," He raised the pistol to the crying man, "Now, do you know where I can get a hold of Bard, or should I just put a hole in your head and be done with it?"_

"_I do not know!" The man screamed, "Please! Please, have mercy! I do not know a person named Bard!"_

"_Hesiod says you do," Connor replied coldly, pulling the trigger._

_The bullet landed a few feet from Alexius, who jumped and shouted in terror, "I DO NOT KNOW HIM! HESIOD LIES!"_

_Connor looked at the pistol, then back at Alexius, who was currently well into begging for his life. He wasn't sure who to believe, at the moment. Hesiod or Alexius? If he had Hesiod at gunpoint, would the man still claim that Alexius knew a Bard? His train of thought broke when a rectangle hit his leg, followed by another two._

"_Take it! Take it all and let me go! I beg of you!" Alexius pled, still inching away._

_Kneeling down to investigate, Connor picked one of the rectangular chunks of paper and opened it up. His eyes narrowed when he found a plastic-wrapped white brick, "What the hell is this?"_

"_It's..."_

"_WHAT THE HELL IS THIS!?" Connor roared, flinging the gun aside and stomping on the brick as he marched over to the cowering Alexius. He dove on top of him, using his good hand to clutch at the man's throat._

_Alexius gasped for air, arms flailing around at his side as he tried to roll out from under the man's weight._

"_YOU THINK THIS IS WHAT I WANT!?" The man in black screamed, his eyes ablaze with unbridled hatred._

_The suffocating man tried to pry Connor's hand from his neck, but was too weak. His attacker's fingertips were digging into his neck. He could feel the blood gliding across his skin._

_Connor lifted the man's head by the neck, then slammed it back down onto the concrete, repeating the process, "YOU THINK THAT'S WHAT I WANT!? YOU THINK I WANT THAT!?"_

_Alexius' hands scraped along the ground around him, feeling desperately for anything that could help him, anything at all. He could feel his strength sapping away with the seconds as the screaming man continued to throttle the life from him. His fingertips brushed against a chunk of cement that had broken free from the rest, and he tried to grab onto it. After a couple of missed attempts, he managed to grab onto the rock and swing it up at Connor's head. His arm was too short, however, and he came up with nothing but air. The man in black didn't even flinch, still screaming and banging Alexius' head on the ground. The dying man resorted to swinging the rock up into Connor's arm, hoping beyond all hope that it would loosen his grip enough that he could break free. They were like that for several long seconds, blood and drool poured from Alexius' agape mouth as Connor continued to scream at him._

"_YOU THINK THAT'S WHAT I WANT!? YOU THINK THAT'S WHAT I WANT!?"_

Connor opened his eyes, glancing to his left at the dark bruise the rock had left, "Having nightmares even when I'm awake..."

"Did you say something?" Sayo whispered.

"Not a thing..." He hoped she didn't catch the shame in his voice.

-

Two men, Nereus and his charge, Panos, surveyed the scene they had come to. Both Alexius and Ophelos were on the ground before them. One's head was crushed into the filthy cement, the other was staring blankly up at the bright morning sky, eyes glassy and void of life. Nereus slowly and cautiously walked over to Alexius, and knelt down beside him. With a precise motion of his hand, he brought his friend's eyelids over his eyes.

"What can you tell?" The second man asked, his voice shaking a little.

"Alexius was strangled to death. The marks on his neck indicate that whoever did it might have a lame right arm, as there are only five marks, and the thumb is placed as that of a left hand," Nereus replied in a low tone.

"The heroin? Is it with him?"

The man checked Alexius' coat, but turned out nothing for his efforts.

"It was supposed to be a routine drop. Nothing out of the ordinary at all. And Elias goes and pulls something like this? He..." Panos clenched his fists in rage, "He kills my brother...he steals from me..."

"What do you want me to do?"

Panos looked at Nereus, his eyes watery, and said, "I want you to find Elias. Break his legs, and bring him to me. There's no way he could do this, himself. He's gonna tell me who he got to do it, then I'm gonna kill him. Then we're gonna kill the bastard that did this. Do you understand me?"

"Perfectly. I'll start with Hesiod. He always seems to know a little about everything."

_-----Author's other note: And there we go, I finished a chapter, even if it IS a little short. Anyway, let's have a recap of events, because it's easy to lose track:_

_1. Connor and Sayo are in Athens. Serac, in a scene that has been omitted, has instructed Connor to 'find the bard', who can tell them where Socrates' grave is, where the Thousand Master is supposed to be hiding._

_2. They have been in Athens three days, at this point, in which Connor has spent his days training Sayo to use her artifact, and his nights searching for the bard. Hesiod, in another omitted scene, tells Connor that Alexius knows someone who goes by the name Bard. Connor hunts down Alexius, and follows him out to the drop site, where he was supposed to execute a minor drug deal._

_3. You'll find out why Connor got so pissed at Alexius somewhere down the line._

_4. I hope you guys don't mind more Connor-centric chapters, because we still have a few of them to go. Even if you do mind, there's no way to avoid it, at this point..._

_5. The chapter title is taken from the Socratic dialogue of the same name, Euthyphro. It discusses piety, and what exactly the word 'pious' means. For example, is it pious to murder a drug dealer? The answer, dear readers, is no. ...I'm pretty sure it's no, anyway. That Socrates is a confusing guy. Read the dialogue and you might catch some semblance of this chapter, but not much, ha..._

_Thanks for reading...-----_


	24. Pacing Is Impractical

_--Author's note: For those who forget what's going on (Everyone who will read this), the ending author's note of last chapter is actually pretty helpful in quickly catching you up to speed. I do not own Negima, but any other characters and ideas are my own. Enjoy...--_

"Casper, I'm serious, we gotta get this right."

"I'm being serious, too! It's tough to time it...Plus, you're really cranky from not sleeping in so long..."

Connor raised a finger, "Not cranky, love, not cranky. I am simply a little testy at how many times I've been hit in the head the last hour. Physical pain doesn't sit well with most people, it's not just me."

"When Haruna draws you, you don't seem to mind pain at all..." Sayo stated.

"I'll bet I also don't mind whips and gagging, either, do I?"

"Well, actually, you didn't want to be gagged because then you couldn't use the safety word."

Connor sat down on the grass, rubbing his chin thoughtfully, "How in depth WAS this comic strip?"

Sayo floated over to her partner, thinking back, "It was about...two-hundred and some pages, I think..."

"And she's a good artist too, isn't she? I think...wait...did you say two-hundred?"

"A little over two-hundred, yes!"

Connor didn't immediately get too concerned, as Sayo had seen it and not been traumatized by it. That was a good sign. So he asked, "How much of this comic have you seen? How do you even know about it?"

"Well it was pretty popular back before the whole baby scandal! In fact, Haruna was selling copies for a good five-thousand yen a shot. I think it was Sakurako-san who bought the first one! I actually haven't seen much of it, just the first few pages or so. Whenever someone reads it, they're alone, so I have a harder time finding them. Plus, they usually go into the bathroom after the first page. It would be really rude to follow them in there..."

"That is possibly the greatest thing I have ever heard. The greatest, or the most awesome."

"Those are basically the same thing, Connor-sensei..." Sayo grinned.

"Casper, there is a profound difference between 'the greatest' and 'the most awesome', but we won't discuss it, today," He rose to his feet and hopped a few steps over to a cinder block, which he picked up. He prepared to throw it up into the air, "Lover, I'm about to throw this up into the air. If you don't switch out with me at the right time, it's gonna land on my head," He threw it up, "If I'm lucky, you'll switch in time and it won't touch me. If I'm really lucky, it will land on my head and I'll die."

"Connor-sensei, that's not funny! Move!" Sayo watched as the block came speeding down.

"Switch! Switch, switch, switch, switch, switch!"

"I'M TOO NERVOUS!!" The ghost shrieked.

THUD!

Connor careened for a second, then promptly fell flat on his back. The cinder block had a spatter of blood on it from where it had collided with the man's skull.

"C-CONNOR-SENSEI!" Sayo eeped. She flew over to him, feeling at his head.

"For someone who did not even attempt to switch places, you certainly feign concern well."

Sayo turned to confront the voice, but found no one behind her. She looked around for a second, then decided it to be her imagination. Or the wind, because the wind definitely sounds like someone talking.

Upon turning back around, Sayo found a second body lying beside the first. She yelped, falling onto her back and flailing her arms around.

"So jumpy," Serac stated, remaining motionless on the ground.

"Wh...What are you doing here?" The ghost asked, sitting upright and rubbing the back of her head. She didn't think Connor was dead, just knocked out. As far as being tough goes, he took a cinder block to the head rather well, she thought.

"Waiting."

"Waiting for what?"

"For you to possess him, again."

"I-I don't think I should..." Sayo mumbled, looking away, "He's not technically asleep, and he's really tired, after all..."

"Which is why you let the block hit him, naturally," Serac said, still on the ground.

Sayo laughed a little, embarrassed about it.

"The thought of it potentially killing him never even crossed your mind."

Sayo shook her head, "Of course not. Connor-sensei doesn't seem like the kind of guy who'd get killed over something silly like this. If it ever did happen, which I don't think it will, it would be more heroic than this."

Serac, unmoved by the sudden onset of the schoolgirl-love-sparkle Sayo was now radiating, continued to look at her blankly. It had to have been a rather uncomfortable angle for him to be looking at her, Sayo thought, so she moved over to Connor's right, the vacant side.

"How very prophetic of you, Aizaka. There is no need to act so noble, however. You may have wanted him to 'rest', but your inactions are not so selfless," The girl grimaced, "You also wanted him to sleep so you could get another look."

"N-No, that's n-not it at all! Not at all, I just...this training is really tough on him, and I don't even know what he goes to do at night...He needs a little r-rest, that's all..."

"Indeed, the training is somewhat unpleasant, but only so much as you allow it to be. He launches bricks and pebbles at himself, picks apart the lonely buildings around this place, and tries to harm himself with the pieces. You switch places with him before the debris hits him. The training is only 'really tough' on him when you fail."

"P-Please, don't say it like that..."

"Less pleasant to hear it, than to think it," Like a breath of relief from a young boy at the bell's freeing toll, a kind wind rolled over the clearing in-between the three, old brick buildings. Serac continued, "You want to protect him. To know him better is to better protect him."

Through a pitiful laugh, Sayo groaned, "It's like you're picking the words out of my head..." She hopped up and started pacing (Floating back and forth) at the heads of the two men on the ground, "But it's so wrong, and embarrassing, and do I get to ki...HAVE to kiss him again? So intrusive, so rude, so unladylike..."

"Only as wrong as you think it to be and, yes, you are to give yourself to him if you truly wish to see."

Still pacing, eyes clenched shut, Sayo's voice continued to rise in pitch, "Why do you have to say it like that!?" When no reply came, Sayo gave a double fist pump, thought the stereotypical Japanese _'FIGHT!'_, and commanded, "Don't watch!" With that, she lunged down, never opening her eyes.

Never before had pacing with ones eyes closed led to such disaster.

After holding the kiss for a few seconds, Sayo opened her eyes. She was currently kissing Connor from above, her chin touching his nose, and her nose pointed towards his throat. The weird part was that Connor hadn't been wearing blue. At all. But this person most definitely was, unless she was seeing things. Slowly, very slowly, she pulled her lips from the others, inched herself up, and became mortified to find Serac was directly below her. Eyes still blank, face still emotionless.

"AAAAHGAHAGHGAHGAHGHH!!" Sayo made one of the more interesting noises to have ever been made.

"Try again," Serac said, remaining still.

Once she took a second to compose herself (The fact that Serac didn't seem bothered or even that he noticed anything had happened helped), she cupped Connor's cheeks and aimed his lips up to the sky. "Sorry," She whispered softly before pressing her mouth over his.

-

Like last time, Sayo found herself in a vast expanse of darkness. The sound of snapping fingers brought down the beam of light over the book on its pedestal. Now with a sense of direction, she made towards the object.

She wasn't too surprised that as soon as she stopped in front of the brown book that Serac was beside her. She asked, "What chapter are we going to see, today?"

The book, under some unseen hand, flipped open. The pages settled down after a few seconds, the apparent selection complete.

"Number one hundred-and-fifty-seven, first," Serac mumbled.

Sayo looked down the list of chapter names until she came to the mentioned chapter, and read the title aloud, "My Eightieth Day..."

The storm of pages began, and soon Sayo's vision was completely obscured by them. She managed to keep her eyes open throughout, this time, curious to see the exact moment when she appeared in the dream. Sure enough, the pages began to thin, and specs of light started to filter through the cracks in the paper wall that surrounded her. Then, silently, they sped off every which way and vanished. It was like they'd never even been there at all.

It was still dark, she noted. Not quite as dark as a moment ago, but dark nonetheless. There was a desk situated in the back of the dank room she found herself in. The glow of several candles on top of the desk was where the light was coming from. Connor was sitting at the desk, hunched over an open book, poring over its pages as though if he looked hard enough he would find gold. The younger version of her teacher let out a groan, closed the book, and reached for another. He took to this book with the same fervor he had the first.

"Where are we?" Sayo asked, looking around for her somber dream companion. He wasn't around, it seemed.

The silence of the study was shattered when the bang of an opening door filled the air.

"HEY!" A voice called.

Sayo spun to find a rickety wooden staircase, and a fresh wave of light pouring down from the door up above. It must surely have been the middle of the day, it was so bright. The voice belonged to that of a small boy, short and red in the face. He had the standard brown hair and cute face that many boys had, but his eyes were a piercing green that drew her gaze in. She was rather sure she was older than he was. Not counting afterlife years, of course.

"They're coming back, now! Hurry up before we miss them, man!"

Connor jumped up from his seat, which clattered to the ground, "They're back, already? I thought it wouldn't be for another few hours, at least!" He hurried across the room and started up the stairs.

"What are you talking about? It's already getting close to dinner! Get your head on straight!" The boy chided, turning and vanishing into the brightness.

Sayo watched as Connor ran up the stairs, but made no move to follow. Rather, she floated over to the books her partner had just been absorbed in. Upon looking at the pages which had been left for all to see, she found that it was just a bunch of random letters and words.

"Oh, darn! You can't read in dreams, can you?" The girl pouted. She didn't have long to mourn her inability to observe that which Connor had been reading, though, as she found herself being dragged away from the desk and up the stairs.

"Hey!" The ghost gasped, "That's cheating! I wasn't done trying!" Though she did not know who the cheater was, she knew that they were quite rude to stop her. The pull took her through a small stone house with minimal furniture, she noted, and out through the front door. Literally, as it had been closed.

The blaring sun above hurt her eyes. She had to squint for much longer than she would have liked before she could really see, at all. The bustle and sounds of people all around told her she was being dragged through crowds, and she spotted countless legs when she turned her eyes down.

No matter how noisy it was around her, Sayo could hear Connor and the other boy talking from somewhere up ahead. She was being pulled after the two boys, it seemed. Once her eyes fully adjusted, she managed to look at the people in the face, rather than at the legs. She immediately wished she had not. They had no actual faces, just slabs of skin covering their skull. The ghost screamed in surprise and horror, closing her eyes and speeding towards the sound of Connor's voice. She hadn't noticed it, before, but the monsters surrounding her were all wearing the same clothes, as well. Nothing distinguished one in the crowd from any other.

Sayo would have thrown her arms around Connor when she finally caught up with him, but she just went right through him without his even noticing. The boys had stopped at a three-foot stone barrier, a sort of fence, that enclosed a path that seemed to lead through the town they were in. There were people and horses marching down the pathway, and people were all over the place just itching to see them. It was like a parade! Knights in their armor, jesters dancing around and looking like idiots, people trumpeting on odd looking instruments, and everyone was talking loudly and happily.

"Look, there he is!" Connor pointed down the procession to one particular man. The man wasn't in the same shiny armor that the rest of the people on horses were. Instead, he was wearing a black coat. In fact, the closer he got...

"Connor-sensei, that guy's got your coat!" Sayo gasped, pointing at the man dramatically. He had committed a terrible offense by having that jacket! "HEY! GUY!" She started waving her arms around, but then remembered no one could see her. All she could do is watch as the guy trotted by on his snow-white horse, his long, sandy blonde hair trailing just behind him in the calm wind. She could see the dark stubble on his rugged, but handsome face. He hadn't gotten to shave in a few days, it looked. Suddenly, she was no longer incensed at the man. He was too pretty to stay mad at...

"That man's a hero," Connor sighed, watching him go, "I want to be just like him."

"Really? I know you had a thing for him, but just like him? Are you gonna enlist, or something?" The smaller boy asked.

"Of course I am! And one day, I'll be a knight just like him, and there will be kids on the side of the road wishing to be just like me."

"Ha!" The small one laughed, following after Connor as the older one turned to leave, "You're gonna be seventeen, soon, and then you'll be old enough to join the military. You're so soft, right now, though, that you can't even beat me. I wouldn't get my hopes so high so early."

"Shut up, Jack, no one asked you."

"Just saying, just saying," Jack laughed, pushing Connor from the side.

Connor responded by mussing his friend's hair, "I'll beat you, soon, anyway! Serac's helping me learn magic, don't forget."

"You think that's gonna help you?" Jack pushed through a couple of faceless men, "You could know how to raise the dead and you still couldn't beat me. Never have, and never will."

"Uh huh, keep telling yourself that. Magic is amazing, and you know it. I'll be able to beat you without lifting a finger, soon. In fact, I..."

Jack stopped walking when his friend did. After looking at him dumbly for a few seconds, he traced his company's gaze and a grin broke out on his lips.

Sayo did the same, wondering why Connor had just stopped talking all of a sudden. She lined herself up behind him and stared off in the direction he was. A short distance away was a girl, who was still watching the soldiers coming home. Unlike the other people, this one had a face and a very vivid one, at that. She didn't get to survey her for long, though, as Connor suddenly asked, "Who's that?"

"That, my frie-"

Sayo covered her ears when Jack's voice suddenly became a high-pitched, scratchy wailing. The sun flickered out and everything flashed black for a split second. The ground shifted and broke apart like a bad television reception, then popped back together.

"She's your boy's girl," Jack finished.

The ghost slowly uncovered her ears, looking at the smaller boy like he was a monster ready to attack at any moment. Connor managed to wrench his eyes from the pretty girl and looked over his shoulder at the now very small man in black, "She's with...captain Russhe? Really?"

Jack grinned even broader when Connor returned his star-struck eyes to the girl, "Looks like you want to be just like the guy for another reason, now, huh?"

"I'm gonna go introduce myself."

"I'll come watch. I mean, come with you."

"No, no," The older held a hand up as he walked away, "You stay behind..."

Sayo's eyes popped open and she found herself very cold. Connor was right next to her, staring up at the sky. The cold went away after a few seconds, and she sat up.

"Are you ok?" She asked Connor, though her voice came out sounding rather weak, "You got hit on the head..."

"I think so," The man replied grimly.

Sayo helped him sit up, "Are you sure?"

"I don't know..." Connor rubbed his sore noggin, "Do you hear something?"

"No...What?"

"Bells. You can't hear them?"

"Maybe you need to lie back down..."

-

Connor and Sayo were both rather happy to end their current training session and head back into the city. Sayo was ready to go back to the hotel, and Connor was ready to pay a second visit to Hesiod, the bartender who sent him to meet with Alexius, who was apparently trying to drop off some drugs. Hesiod had told him that Alexius knew the man called Bard, and could tell him where to find him. Unfortunately, Alexius' throat had gotten well acquainted with Connor's left hand, and now he was dead.

"Alright," The man in black muttered once the two were close to the hotel, "You go on back. I need to head off, now."

Sayo sighed, but knew that Connor wouldn't budge an inch on this. "Ok, I'll go. But promise me you'll be careful, ok? Don't go drinking, at least, when you're out!"

"Come on, Casper! Don't you know me at all? I'm the responsible one," Connor smirked, waving her off, "I'll see you soon."

"Bye bye," The ghost smiled weakly, hovering off on her own.

Connor watched her go for a little while before addressing the people staring at the nutjob who talked to no one, "What the hell do you people want, an autograph? This ain't a free show, get the hell out of here! Yeah, keep walking, fatty!"

-

Our favorite ghost girl wasn't alone for long, as Serac decided that it would be a good time to give her some company. Or at least Fate decided. She didn't get too surprised by his random appearance, as it was pretty much his 'thing'.

"Serac, there you are. I was wondering when you were going to show up, again!" She admitted happily.

"Wonder no more, little one."

Sayo smiled brightly, well pleased that now she could ask him a couple quick questions before he poofed away again. "When I was in Connor-sensei's dream, there was a lot of weird stuff in there. Like why did all of those people have no faces? And why were they all wearing the same clothes?"

Serac idly followed the ghost's lead, replying gently, "That is because those people are unimportant to the memory. People do not remember every minute detail of everything. The people in the crowd were just that, people in a crowd. They all looked the same because to Connor, they did not matter. They were nameless, faceless people."

Sayo nodded, "That makes sense, I guess. Well, why did I get dragged after both of them?"

"The reason you were pulled after Connor is because it is his dream, not your own. You can only see what he is remembering, what world his mind is creating in that moment. You will always have to be a certain distance to the person whose dream you are watching, because they only remember what they saw. There can be no exploring, for you."

"Ok, I get that, too. But tell me this, too. Why did the sky go black and Jack's voice get all loud and scary? It made me miss that girl's name..."

Serac nodded once, "That was because Connor willed it away. He tries very hard not to think about his past, as it brings him excruciating shame and guilt. He does not want to remember her or what happened to her."

The girl floated up to her hotel room door and then right through it, Serac just behind. "What did happen to her?" She asked softly, sitting on the edge of the bed.

"She died," Serac stated, moving to the darkest corner of the room, "That is what happened to her."

"How did she die?"

"That is what you are watching to find out."

"Did Connor kill her, like he says?"

The Wanderer was silent for a moment, then said, "He believes so."

"Do you believe so?"

"What I believe does not matter. It is what you will believe that is important."

Sayo fell onto her back, pouting. Serac was certainly near the top on the list of frustrating people. So she was going to figure out how Connor's old flame had died, and why he was the way he was. Why he had black magic and why he insisted on being as much of a loner as possible. "Argh, why do I want to know more about him!?"

"A better question to ask yourself would be why you are so concerned with the personal intricacies of his life that have nothing to do with you," Serac stated.

"Ok, why!?"

"I said ask yourself," The Sage retorted, vanishing.

-

Of all the sights that Connor was ready for upon entering the bar, an unconscious Hesiod tied to a chair and badly beaten wasn't one of them. The surprised youth rushed over to the captured proprietor to try and help him, but before any such thing could be done he was thrown to the ground by a rush of water. The twisting torrent wrapped around him and clenched him like a bug in a fist, hauling him up towards the ceiling.

"And you must be the Connor that Hesiod spoke of, yes? The man in the black coat."

He couldn't turn his head to look in the direction of the voice, but he did manage to glimpse him approaching out of the corner of his eye. The oncoming man was wearing a plain gray suit and thin black sunglasses. His slicked back black hair and plain black tie topped the whole thing off.

"And just who are you supposed to be?" The confined man asked through a grin.

"My name is Nereus," The man in the suit claimed, bowing slightly, "And Hesiod tells me that a man called Connor in a black coat met with Alexius last night. Would you be this Connor?"

"The one and only, chief."

"It is my deepest pleasure to make your acquaintance. Do excuse my manners, but please feel free to die, now," The man clenched his fist and the waters around Connor came crushing in on him. Nereus would have then turned to leave, but the liquid he was controlling began to freeze over, leaving him with nothing he could manipulate further. Granted, he had come into the possession of a Connor sickle, but that wasn't quite what Panos had asked for.

Connor wrenched his arms free of the ice, then pried his legs out and hopped down to the floor. "A mage! That's always good for some fun. Since you obviously knew this Alexius guy, why don't I ask you what I asked him? Where can I find the Bard?"

Nereus was now rather intrigued by his newest target, but more intrigued by his question, "Elias? What query do you have with him?"

The candles on each of the tables were lit and glowing dimly, casting flickering shadows of each man across the floor. Connor removed his attention from the dancing shadows to bark, "Not Elias, the Bard! I'm looking for the Bard!"

"Bard is Elias' nickname. He tells fanciful tales and leads people on with lies and flattery. What business do you have with him?"

Connor sighed deeply. At least he knew the guy's real name, now. "I've been having trouble sleeping, lately, so I need him to tell me a bedtime story. My mom just won't do it for me, anymore. She says I'm getting to be too big, but I disagree. So come on, help a guy out. Where is Elias?"

Nereus ignored the man's question and asked one of his own, "So Elias did not send you to kill Alexeus, after all. Still, you did kill him, did you not?" The dark look he received in turn told him all he needed to know, "Then I'm sad to say you still won't be leaving this room outside of a bag."

The man in black slowly crossed the room and went behind the counter, where he grabbed a bottle of liquor, "Do you mind?" He held up the bottle to indicate the drink.

Nereus tipped his head and smiled, "By all means."

"Want a glass?"

"No thank you, I don't drink."

Connor nodded, moving back to his spot across the room before Nereus. "That's just as well, I really don't like to share."

"Are you finished?" The man in the suit asked after a few seconds of nothing had passed.

"Yeah, I think I'm good."

"You haven't even had a drink, yet."

Connor looked at the bottle, then back at Nereus. "I actually promised a friend I wouldn't go drinking, tonight."

"Honorable," Nereus admitted, swinging his arm up to summon three large tendrils of water to crush his enemy.

The aforementioned enemy watched the water approach and freeze into jagged spikes under his own influence. Serac had at least taught him that much. Nereus rushed him through the horizontal pillars of ice, and Connor put the bottle to his lips. He dove over a low sweeping kick from his assailant, mouth full of liquor. Nereus spun in time to see Connor kick over one of the tables and duck behind it for cover.

He stormed over to the overturned table to take care of the killer, but when he got over there Connor popped up with a still lit candle in hand. The mage didn't have time to react before the candle had already been turned into a makeshift blowtorch. Connor spewed out the liquid and engulfed Nereus' face in fire. The man screamed, clutching his face and backing away.

"Yeah, but not too honorable," Connor snorted, hopping over the table and grabbing the stunned and wounded man by the shoulders. He slung him around and threw him up into one of the jagged ice sickles, which rammed into his back and out through his chest. "Now who needs the bag?" He asked grimly, walking by the now dead suit and towards the still unconscious Hesiod.

"Hey, hey!" He said loudly, "Wake up!" He gave the round man a slap on the cheek.

Hesiod's eyes fluttered open and he mumbled groggily, "What's going on? What happened?"

"You were attacked, but don't worry. I took care of him. Now if you know you've got to tell me where the Bard is."

"Wh-What?"

"Elias! Where can I find Elias?"

"I'm right here!"

Connor rolled his eyes as he stood upright, "What is with people and timely dramatic entrances?" Sure enough, a young blonde man was standing in the doorway that led to the back of the bar, staring Connor down.

"My name is Elias, and I am the Bard."

_--Author's other note: Yeah. I'm surprised I'm here, too. I wave to all of you and hope to see you again, soon! Thanks for reading...--_


	25. The Knife In My Back Is Mine

_--Author's note: I do not own Negima, but any other characters and ideas are my own. Enjoy...--_

Watching quietly while Elias cut the ropes holding Hesiod, Connor wished he hadn't told Sayo he wouldn't drink. The bottle he was holding was not only a handy weapon in the right circumstances, but a good friend in most every circumstance. With a little regret, he set the thing down on one of the tables. Never did his eyes leave the Bard, whom he was ready to get his answers from and leave. He'd had more than enough time abroad, and was ready to go back to Japan.

"I hate traveling," He groaned.

Elias didn't slow his cutting, but he raised his head and asked, "Did you say something?"

"Yeah," Connor rubbed the back of his head and yawned, "I've been looking for you. I need to know where Socrates' grave is."

Elias laughed as Hesiod finally came unbound and slumped into his arms. Showing surprising strength, the Bard helped the weak, much larger man towards the back of the bar. "Many people have looked for the burial site of one of humanity's greatest minds, but none of them have found it. You know why?"

"Why?" Connor asked, following the two men into the back.

"Because I've never told any of them."

"You mean because none of them have ever beaten your face in, right?"

Now it was Hesiod's turn to laugh, which surprised both men, somewhat. Elias helped him onto his bed, where he lay rather still. "Forgive me for laughing, Connor, but more people speak with their fists than with their minds when there is something of great worth that they are pursuing. There is no threat you can issue nor follow through on that we have not endured many a time before."

Connor sat on the stool in the corner of the room that Elias motioned towards. Once situated, he asked, "You said we. I thought Bard was the storyteller, not both of you. Do you both know where the grave is?"

Elias nodded, "Hesiod and I are the only ones who know the location of the grave. Hesiod is my closest friend, though we do not act it anywhere where anyone else can see."

"Butt buddies, huh?"

"Not like that, you nimrod!" Hesiod barked.

"I know many of the secrets of Greece, and there are many people who desire to know them, as well. The location of Socrates' tomb is but one of the plethora of secrets I keep," Elias patted Hesiod's arm, "This man helps to protect and hide me from those who would harm me, and helps get me out of trouble when I can't do it, myself."

"And what do you get in return? Obviously you don't enjoy being a pinata," Connor turned his eyes to the bedridden man.

"I'm a very sick man, and as you can imagine running a bar does bring in a lot of money. That is, if the bar is successful. Look at my bar. There's a man hanging on an ice spike and the police aren't here, yet. Elias makes the money to help pay off my medical bills, and I provide him shelter from those who would attempt to harm him for what he knows. Besides that, we've been friends for many years."

"What are you sick with?"

Elias raised a hand to signal Hesiod to stop, and that he would answer. "Hesiod has acute myeloid leukemia."

"Cancer."

"Right. Tough old codger's not going down without a fight, though," Hesiod chuckled, raising a fist to give the air the one fingered salute, "Cancer's got nothing on me!"

"Not so long as I keep paying the bills, old man," Elias laughed.

"Well you know, there's a question. How is it you manage to pay the bills if you need to hide from so many people?"

"I'm not going to lie to you, because you've already helped us out a fair bit, even if you didn't realize you were doing it," The Bard poked his hand under Hesiod's mattress and pulled out a rectangular brick wrapped up in yellow paper.

"That had better not be what I think it is," Connor grit his teeth.

"The man you killed, Alexius, was actually my supplier. Hesiod knew he would be out at the drop spot because I told him, and he sent you there because..."

"More people speak with their fists than with their minds when there is something of great worth that they are pursuing," Hesiod repeated himself, "Elias was watching, last night. He collected the goods after you left."

"You used me to get rid of your supplier? Why?"

Elias sighed, "It's true, now my supply will dry up and I'll need to find another way to pay my way, but Panos was getting greedy. He's been threatening me and increasing his prices so that I can barely get by. I fell under and owed him money. I'd never have been able to pay him back. I needed a way out."

Connor shook his head, "Who the hell is Panos? I thought the man I killed was called Alexius. Was Panos the other man?"

"No, the man you killed was called Alexius," The Bard stated solemnly, "He was Panos' brother."

The man in black covered his eyes with his hands and groaned, "You had me kill your drug lord's brother because you're in his debt and can't pay your way out? He's gonna flat out kill you, now!"

"I was well on my way to that, anyway. But you've stripped him of his brother and his bodyguard, Nereus. He's weakened and blinded by rage. Now's our chance to strike back."

Connor already knew where this was going. "You mean now's MY chance to strike back. You want me to kill Panos and save your sorry life, then you'll tell me where the grave is."

"Yeah, that's pretty much it," Elias snickered, "Judging from what happened out there, I'd say you can probably do it."

"Where is Panos? Do you have any way of contacting him?"

Elias grinned and left the room, Connor following. The two men walked back into the bar and the blonde of the two strode right up to Nereus' corpse and stuck his hand into his pocket. He pulled out the man's cell phone, then retraced his steps back to Hesiod's little room. Connor returned to his seat and watched as the Bard went through the call list and picked out Panos' number. As it rang he cleared his throat. After a few seconds a throaty hello came through the tiny speaker.

"I've found Elias," The Bard perfectly mimicked Nereus' voice, "What do you want me to do with him?"

"Did you break his legs?"

Through a little surprised grimace which suggested Elias wasn't keen on having his legs snapped, he replied, "Of course. Listen..." He moved the phone away from his mouth, cleared his throat, then started to beg for mercy in his own voice, "Panos, please! I beg you, forgive me! I didn't mean for him to kill Alexius! I'm sorry! P-Please," He gasped, squeezing out a tear and maintaining a perfectly raspy voice, "I'll take you to him! Ple-" He cleared his throat again and barked, "Shut it, pig!" He kicked the wall and then finished in Nereus' voice, "So what should be done?"

"That was inspired," Connor admitted under his breath.

"Bring him to my brother's home. He can explain to his wife why Alexius won't be coming back. Then we can figure out how to kill him."

The Bard was looking rather pale, but he still managed a perfect Nereus when he asked, "Give me the address again. My mind's a little spotty."

While Elias scurried about to find a pen or pencil to scribble the address down, Connor tried not to lose his cool and attack him. Another drug dealer. Just his luck. Worst of all he had to help the dirty scumbag to get what he needed. So be it. He could play with the vermin for a little while, as long as he got what he wanted in the end.

"When can you be there?" Elias asked a little louder than normal to get the other two's attention. "In an hour. I understand. We'll be there." He clicked the phone shut and looked at Connor, who looked back at him with an icy glare. "When I said 'we'll be there' I hope you know I meant you."

"You'd only get in my way, anyway."

Hesiod sighed deeply from his place on the bed, "I know you're probably thinking we're terrible people. We've misled you, used you, and now you find out we peddle drugs like greedy monsters. I assure you, Connor, that had we any other options to survive we would take them. Elias does not enjoy selling these filthy substances, but without the money I would die. The burden he carries is not one you can understand. Knowing so much but being sworn to secrecy is more difficult than you know."

"When you think of it, our offer is not a bad one," Elias chimed in earnestly, "Of the two of us, Panos is clearly the more evil. He runs more illegality than I do a thousand times over! I'm just a little pawn stuck under his thumb. By ridding us of him, you would do not only Hesiod and myself, but all of Athens a favor and a courtesy. One that I would gladly return by telling you what you want to know."

"Alright, God, just give me the address. What do you want me to do to prove he's dead? Carve off his head, or something?" Connor asked sarcastically, snatching the offered scrap of paper with the address of the deceased man.

"Goodness, no," The Bard shook his head, "Nothing so brutal. Bring me Panos' wedding band. He never takes it off, Alexius used to say so all the time. That will be proof enough that the deed is done, and I will have your reward waiting for upon your return."

"And if I don't return?" He asked in reply, heading for the door.

"Then I'll remember you fondly."

"Great."

-

"And this isn't ritzy at all," Connor commented, looking up and down the gigantic iron fence before him. Beige walls over ten feet tall surrounded the premises, but above and beyond them he could make a out red-tiled roof. Through the fence he could see a pathway that led to a monstrous house that looked to have as much window as it did wall. Luckily for him, Elias had thought it wise to leave directions on the scrap of paper, so he had made it with a couple of minutes to spare, only having gotten lost twice.

He walked around to the back of the building (An effort that took a few minutes), then hopped the wall and proceeded towards the silent house. There were lights on in one room on the second floor, and in one room on the base floor. He inched up beside the window on the base floor and peeked into it. A man and a woman were both inside. The woman was clearly distressed, and the man appeared to be consoling her. Panos and Alexius' wife, probably. It didn't appear that anyone else was present in the house, unless they were sitting around in dark rooms.

The man in black rather carelessly made his way around the house and to the front door, which he knocked on. After a moment, the door flung open and the woman stood before him, red in the face and tears all down her face. "Where is Alexius!?" She shrieked.

"He's dead. I'm sorry," Connor put his hand to her shoulder as she began to sob and pushed her to the side. Panos was approaching the door from the back of the red room, obviously not as fast as the widow in her grief.

"Who are you?" The drug lord asked, freezing in his tracks.

"Let's go with Death," Connor replied, pulling his sword out from its sheath.

"You are the monster who killed my brother! Why? Tell me why!" Panos yelled, not backing away from the raised blade.

"Because that's what monsters do! They kill each other!" Connor yelled back.

"Then why hurt him!?" The woman screamed from behind Connor, which caused him to stop. "What has Panos done to deserve death!? Tell me that!"

"He's a drug lord, for starters!"

"A drug lord!? HA!" Panos scoffed, unbuttoning his shirt, "Elias has told you this, yes? That I'm the big bad man who needs to be slain? Here!" The man thrust his hand into his pocket and wrenched out his wallet. After a moment of going through it, he flung a card at Connor.

The confused man knelt down and picked it up. "What is this?" He asked, looking the card over. It looked a lot like an identification card.

"I'm the chief of medicine at Patission General Hospital. My brother was the drug dealer, not me. Elias is a liar and a cheat! A despicable man who should be torn asunder and hung about for all to see!" The man's face was a deep shade of red as he spoke, "And you listened to him and killed my brother! What's worse is after you killed him, you had the audacity to steal from his body that which he carried! When you kill my family, you kill a part of me! And when you steal from my family, you steal from me! For this, you are the monster and you will be repaid in kind, even if not by me!"

"You work at a hospital?" Connor asked, furrowing his brow, "What kind of chief of medicine needs a bodyguard?"

"One that has to deal with criminals like you so often!" The man spat back.

"Wait, a hospital...Did you recently have a patient called Hesiod?"

"I have so many patients every day that you expect me to recall one out of all of them? You truly are a fool. But this one you speak of...I know him well. Hesiod is the bartender, yes?"

After nodding for a second Connor said, "Yeah, that's him. He has some sort of cancer."

"I know. He made sure everyone knew when we had to refuse him treatment because he had no insurance. He's probably about to die, I would wager. What does he have to do with any of this?"

"Hesiod and Elias are working together. Hesiod was the one who sent me to the drop point. He did it because he wanted to get to you, and he sent me here to kill you...He said Elias went there after me and took the drugs. Why he would do this, I don't understand..."

"Do you have any idea how much that stuff will sell for? Tens of thousands of dollars for a couple bricks! Don't even question why a snake like Elias would do it!" While the woman sobbed at the door, Connor tried to stomach what had just happened. The Bard really was a wicked liar. Nereus hadn't been kidding, sadly. And even Hesiod! Connor felt stupid for not having seen that one coming.

"Give me your wedding band," Connor demanded, sheathing his sword.

"What do you want with it?" Panos asked sharply, "Are you so desperate to steal from me and my family yet again?"

"Just shut the hell up and listen! I need the ring to prove to Elias that I've killed you. Then he'll give me what I want and I can get out of this backstabbing bitch of a country! I'll lead you straight to him and you can peel the flesh off of him like he was just a big old banana, but first I need to have him help me! Give me your ring. I'll leave it with Elias and you can take it back from him, yourself. Hesiod is there, as well. You can have both of them. But I need the ring."

The two stared at one another for a long time before Panos reluctantly pulled off his wedding band. He held it in a clenched fist when he offered it, "You and I are far from allies. The man who killed my brother is a monster and retribution will fall upon you for all your crimes, someday, no matter how close or far away that day may be. You will suffer for the things you have done."

"If suffering is all I do I'll count myself lucky," Connor replied bitterly.

Panos dropped the ring into Connor's hand.

"Leave thirty minutes after I do. I need to pick someone up before I meet with Elias. Go to Hesiod's downtown. They'll both be there, as will your ring. I'll already be gone. Oh, and if I get there and they're already dead or you've even let them know you're alive, I'll be keeping your ring," Connor whirled around and walked towards the door. He cast a sorrowful glance at the widow as he went by. He could swear bells were chiming.

-

"Take your goddamned ring," Connor dropped the little golden object into Elias' open hand.

The young man looked over the trinket and then handed it to Hesiod, who grinned wickedly as he confirmed that it was indeed Panos' ring. "I'd recognize that bastard's ring anywhere," The round man stated cruelly, savoring the touch of the object as though possessing it had righted some cosmic injustice.

"Now pay up. It's time to tell me where the grave is," Connor demanded, crossing his arms.

"I've done you one better!" Elias produced a map of Athens, with one spot in particular circled with a red pen, "That is where the grave is located. The city has been built over the grave, and to get it you have to journey down into the sewers. You should be able to find it with this."

"No story? So much for being the Bard, huh?" Connor took the map and looked it over, "But anyway, how about you give me the real location?"

The Bard looked slightly taken aback, "What do you mean? That IS the real location! Why would I lie to you, the one who has been so helpful to us?"

"Do you swear?"

"Of course I do!"

Connor punched the man in the nose as hard as he could, sending him sprawling over onto the ground, knocked clean out.

"Hey!" Hesiod yelled, trying to sit up from his bed and failing.

"Swearing is bad. Casper, do your thing," Connor motioned to the down and out Bard.

"U-Um, I really don't know what you mean..." Sayo said sheepishly, looking around guiltily.

"Come on. You don't think I would have noticed it? I start having dreams about my past and you suddenly start sleeping whenever I do? And come on. You let a cinder block fall on my head for the second time."

"B-But...Serac made me do it!"

"Uh huh, sure he did. We'll talk about this later, ok? Right now, you need to get into this guy's head and find out where Socrates' grave is, because I need to get in there really, really bad," Connor almost felt like he should be begging Sayo to get her to do this faster.

"Is it for Asakura?"

"Yeah, so let's be a little quicker about it, what do you say?"

After a slight pause, Sayo shook her head, "It feels like I'd be cheating on you!"

"What!?"

"I feel like I'm the only one who should be inside you, and you're the only person who should be inside me, and we should only ever be inside each other, and not other people!"

Connor slapped himself in the forehead, "Sayo you need to find this one out for me because this guy is a chronic liar and he's not gonna tell me where the grave really is. After this, I swear we can be inside each other as much as you want, but right now I really need your help!"

She pouted a little, but nodded all the same. "Ok, but don't look!" Connor turned around, and Sayo (Very reluctantly) gave the Bard a kiss.

"Who the HELL are you talking to?" Hesiod asked, staring at Connor like he was completely nuts.

"You're fat," Connor replied bluntly.

Sayo popped back out a moment later and gave Connor a hug around the neck from behind, "I know where it is! I'm sorry I cheated on you!"

"It's fine, it's fine, let's get the hell out of here!" He made sure to kick Elias in the side before leaving. This last goodbye pulled the unconscious man back to the world of the living, but he was a little too shaken up to get onto his feet right away. Connor was long gone by the time he finally got up.

"How the hell did he know the spot I gave him was a fake?" He groaned, using his shirt sleeve to try and clean off all the blood from his nose.

"I don't know. He started talking to himself like a crazy person while you were out. I thought he was gonna kill me! But who cares? He did what we wanted him to, and now he's gone. We got the drugs, now all you need to do is sell them and I can get my treatment. I got my revenge on that bastard cheapskate, and everything is right. Everyone got what they deserved."

"Don't be so hasty," A voice came from the doorway. Both men turned to find Panos in the doorway, gun in hand, "You still have more coming."

_--Author's other note: And so the bad guys die and the good guys get the information they need. Connor and Sayo 1, Bad Guys 0. There was so much lying and stuff in here I was like 'Whoa, I never want to go to Greece, now, and I made all this crap up'. More to come soon, I believe, as I'm finally through all the parts I didn't want to write. YAY nearly year long break! ...Or something... Thanks for reading...--_


	26. The Man In Black

_--Author's note: This is the longest chapter I've ever written. I don't like really long chapters, personally, but I couldn't come up with a good way to break this one up into two. Anyway, this one is hugely Connor-centric. Like, even more than all of LIAB combined. Just a heads up. I do not own Negima, but any other characters and ideas are my own. Enjoy...--_

"Just lead."

"You have to tell me!"

"Casper, just let it go and lead."

The awkward duo comprised of Connor and Sayo had been on foot for the better part of two hours, now on their way towards the grave and the Thousand Master. Well, half of them had been on their feet. The other half was spoiled with the luxury of floating. Connor had very little idea of where he was going, but he expected there would be a tombstone at some point or other, and he prayed that Sayo knew where she was actually going, because at times it felt like she was just wandering. They were walking down the side of the highway, conversation made up mostly of: 'Tell me!', and 'No.'.

"But why not!?" Sayo whined, floating around him in quick, pouty circles.

"Because you broke the trust!" Connor replied sharply, "You know how I am! I like to keep things close to the vest and that I only tell as many people as I can stand becoming emotionally close to!"

"But you haven't told anyone!"

"Case and point!"

"Connor-sensei!" Sayo stopped moving altogether.

"For the thousandth time, don't call me that!" He stopped, as well.

Sayo sat down on a rock and folded her arms in a huff, "I'm not going to take you there unless you tell me what happened to that girl and why that man had your coat!"

"Casper, you're gonna take me there right now, and you're gonna like it," Connor pointed at her, eyebrows raised just slightly.

"Actually, I think I'm gonna take a nap," Sayo fell backwards.

"Sayo Aizaka, you will listen to me!"

"I don't wanna."

"Young lady, you will march your little butt to that grave right this instant!"

"I don't feel like it. Ask me again, later."

And there it was. Sayo had developed enough of a backbone so as to oppose Connor and put herself first. For Connor, it was a very bittersweet moment. He was proud of the girl for standing tall and demanding for what she wanted, which was something he never really thought she had much of a mind to do. Then on the other hand, he was mad because this really conflicted with his wants. No grave meant no Thousand Master, and no Thousand Master meant no soul, and no soul meant no Asakura and no redemption. He also had little desire to divulge his past to someone he didn't plan to kill right after. Which is why he couldn't have anymore therapists.

"Why do you want to know so badly?" He asked.

Sayo flipped back up so she was once again sitting on the large rock, "Because I want to know you better than anyone else. I want to see you for who you really are, all of the good and all of the bad."

"Well, that makes one of us," Connor sat down in front of her, "Look, there's a reason I try not to think about this stuff. I'm not proud of a lot of what I've done, and this is what started it all. What happened changed my life terribly and in a way I never expected. It was the defining time in my life that made me who I am, today."

"And that's why I want to know, so badly," Sayo whispered.

Both were quiet while Connor mulled it over. He could always lie. But Sayo could always dive into his head whenever he fell asleep and pick out the truth, for herself. He couldn't stay awake, forever. He was already worn out from his unpleasant stay in Athens and staying awake, then, so she was going to find out, anyway. Not to mention if he didn't give her what she wanted, he couldn't get what he wanted. Equivalent exchange. Sounded like something out of a manga.

"Do you promise never to repeat any of this? Even to me, I don't want to talk about this ever again. I'll tell you what happened, and you take me to the grave."

Sayo nodded, "Tell me what happened, and I'll take you there."

He swallowed hard, then asked, "What was the last point you were at?"

"You just met the girl, who Jack said was the knight's girl."

"Right, Russhe's girl, I remember."

"What was her name?"

"Ahh...Well, we'll call her Daisy," Connor forced a grin.

"Why Daisy?" Sayo asked, furrowing her eyebrows.

"Because Tsuwabuki is too long," The man in black retorted. He left out the part about daisies being her favorites. "When I first saw Daisy, I just went head over heels. I'd never seen a more beautiful girl. I'm kind of glad you didn't see the part where I first talked to her, because I stuttered and looked like an absolute moron almost the entire way through. I introduced myself two or three times and, for some reason I'll never understand, she gave me her name and talked to me. She was funny and lighthearted, but you could see it in her eyes that she had worried a lot, before. Probably about Russhe, actually."

"Who was he? The man with your coat?"

Connor thought for a moment, then said, "He was a hero, once upon a time. A military man with a long history of saving the innocent and showing no mercy to those who deserved none. He started out as a private in the Koren militia during the Tacta invasion, and worked his way up the ranks to lieutenant colonel of the king's army in only three years. He kept the title in name only, however, because he refused to be responsible for the lives of fellow soldiers."

Sayo frowned, "That doesn't sound like much of a hero, to me. A real hero would accept the responsibility and the burden of being a leader."

"Not a hero, huh? Tell that to the civilians he herded out of burning villages, the people he helped liberate from slavery, the poor he freed from corrupt politicians. No, in those three years Russhe was a hero. You saw how we all looked at him. I wanted to be him, and so did every other kid who had heard his name."

"Why was there so much fighting going on?"

"We were in a civil war. Three guesses as to what it was about."

Sayo didn't even need to pause and think, "Religion?"

"Ding, ding, ding! Tell her what she's won, Johnny! Where I'm from we don't have separation of church and state. We have a king by blood, and the king has an army. If you don't follow the king's religion, things don't go well for you. Especially if someone starts making waves. You can see how things could get out of control with a system like that. Jack, the boy you saw in there, had his entire faith destroyed, along with his friends. He was taught to protect people, and he showed me what he had been shown. He was the person who taught me how to fight, and I never could beat him, the bugger. So I spent a long time learning swordsmanship from Jack, and magic from Serac. The civil war wasn't over by any means, but a lot of the time it felt like it was so far away from me that it could never touch me in my little bubble of a life. I couldn't have been any more wrong. Even if war doesn't touch you, directly, it sure as hell is gonna affect you indirectly."

"And it got to you through Daisy?"

Connor nodded, "It got to me through Daisy. Like Jack said, she was Russhe's girl. No matter how much I liked it or disliked it, there was nothing I could do about it. He was a military man, so of course the war affected her. We wound up becoming good friends, and a part of me always thought that we would end up together. I didn't know how it would happen, but I was sure that she would love me back in time. Then, I was sixteen, she was eighteen, and he was twenty-three. I was the only one not considered an adult. When you are old enough to drink and to enlist at seventeen, you cross the gap from childhood to adulthood, so I was the baby of the three of us."

"Russhe also became a very good friend of mine. He'd always play ball with us and help us get out of the trouble we inevitably got into, you know. That kind of thing. But one thing he would never, ever, ever do was talk about the war. Whenever someone asked him about it, everything about him would fall apart. His voice dropped, his eyes went kind of blank, and he refused to talk about it to anyone. Even Daisy."

Sayo interrupted, "Why did he stop fighting?" She asked, "You said the war wasn't over."

As he nodded Connor replied, "That's true, the war itself wasn't over. But for Russhe, it was. He never said why he stopped fighting. At least not to me. Maybe it just became too much for him, maybe it was for love, maybe it was because he lost sight of what he was fighting for. No matter why he quit, I still considered him a hero. On my seventeenth birthday, I went to the bar to get my first drink. After that, I had a bigger plan..."

-

Connor, Jack in tow, threw the double-doors to the tavern open and strode in like a king among peasants, grinning wickedly and spinning around a pouch full of money. It was just after midnight, which meant our now-of-age buddy was ready for a drink. Jack didn't like alcohol at all, but he knew this wasn't about the drink as much as it was about the drinking. It was like a rite of passage to adulthood, so he carried around a smile just as big as his friend's.

"Barkeep!" Connor threw up a hand, "Guess what today is!"

The well-built man laughed, holding up a large mug, "I know what today is, and I'm already ready for ya, little buddy!"

The two friends jumped up to the bar. Jack pointed out, "Hey! That's BIG buddy, now! My boy's a man!"

"That's only mostly contradictory," Connor said through a grin, "Let's play a game! I give you money, and you give me alcohol! Are you ready?"

The bartended shook his head a little bit and stated, "I knew there was a reason I got up this morning..."

Within ten seconds Connor had a mug in his hand and his pouch had gotten a little lighter. "Cheers!" He shouted, smacking his teeth with the mug it went up so fast. Just as quickly as it went up, it came rushing back out and all over the floor. "WHOA!" He spit another time to get as much of the taste out of his mouth as he could, "That tastes like piss!"

"It's not in the least bit curious that you'd know what piss tastes like," A voice from elsewhere in the bar stated over Jack's laughter.

Both boys turned to locate the owner of the voice. Russhe waved back at them once their eyes fell on him. They weren't entirely surprised to see him, there, as he often went out for a drink or two to polish off the day. That he was here tonight was just a stroke of good luck for the duo.

"Don't worry," The blonde man said, "Piss is an acquired taste. Oh, and happy birthday."

Connor and Jack left their spot (And the wretched horse urine) to take up a new spot by their older friend. "Thanks," Connor grinned, "I know you got me something, right?"

"Actually," The blonde said, "It should be you that's getting me something."

Jack tapped his chin in thought, "I'm pretty sure I have the whole birthday thing down, but maybe I was wrong. You're supposed to give presents on your birthday?" He shot an accusing look at Connor, "And I thought we were friends."

"Ease off on the sarcasm, there, lad," Russhe laughed, "You're killing me! Besides, sincere wishes and handshakes are what's in order for your newly engaged elder!"

Jack tilted his head to the side a little and Connor's jaw dropped.

"Like..." The youngest one started, "To be married?"

"Of course!"

"With...Daisy?"

"Yes, with Daisy! Who else?"

Jack was a quick thinker, and he knew that Connor did not like what had just happened. In fact, if there was a scale from one to ten, ten being he loved it, he would be somewhere in the negatives. He wasn't sure exactly which number, but he knew it had a minus before it. To cover, he dove across the small round table and tackled Russhe to the floor in a hug. "That's awesome!" He shouted, "Congratulations!"

On the floor and laughing, Russhe hugged Jack back and said, "I asked her last night! I'd made us dinner and set out the candles and everything! I almost was too scared to ask her because, honestly, everything I cook tastes like crusty man's ass."

"And it's not in the least bit curious that you'd know what crusty man's ass tastes like. Though you were in the military," Jack remarked smartly, sending a sharp glance over his shoulder at Connor, who was still sitting there like he didn't know how to move.

"But she said yes!" The blonde man gushed, "She said yes!"

-

"And then what happened? What were your big plans for later?" Sayo asked, chin propped in her hands.

"My plans," Connor started, "Were to go and enlist. You know, just another step to becoming the man I adored."

"I'll bet you really wanted to enlist after you found that out, huh?"

"Part of me did, but I didn't."

"Why not?"

The man in black sighed, "I wish I could say that it was because Russhe made me promise not to, as an early wedding present, but that's not why I didn't enlist. I wasn't sitting there because I was mad or shocked. Sure, I was depressed and just a tad heartbroken, but...Well, I'm kind of ashamed to say that I was just thinking about myself. For the explanation on that, I'll have to go back a little further."

-

Connor took the flask that was offered to him and had a long drink from it. Sweat trickled down the sides of his face in wandering little trails. The sun above was beating down on his head and setting all the grass around him aglow. Serac sat a couple of feet off to his right.

"You are progressing," He stated blandly.

"I'd hope so!" The boy laughed, "If you told me I'd gotten worse I'd probably kill myself!"

Serac didn't regard that comment with any particular reaction, and instead decreed, "It is time you learned of a new kind of magic."

This was spectacular news, as our young friend could never get enough of this stuff crammed into his already jam-packed head. He didn't say he could barely handle what he had, now, because it was a chance to learn something new, and he always wanted something new.

"Connor, you are becoming more aware of the things that surround you. Physical things that can be dissected and understood on a molecular and human level. That is well, but there are other, greater things."

"Like gods, angels, and demons, right?"

"Correct. While the physical being of these things can still be understood on a physical level, there are some things that cannot be. Remember this: Material things can be understood materialistically. Spiritual things can be understood spiritualistically. These are different."

"I don't get it," Connor admitted, "I thought everything could be understood physically. I mean, you can take things out of the air and there's still something there. I would have sworn on my life that air was basically nothing, and then you showed me that even air is something. So if something I can't even see is something, how can there be anything that isn't something physical?"

"A fair question. What would you say of the soul, then?"

"The soul? Hell if I know."

Serac continued with his deadpan, "What do you think of the soul?"

"Well, uh...As far as I know, your soul is what makes you who you are. It's your personality, and it's what goes on after you die. Um...You can't see it..."

"Can you taste it?"

"I don't think so."

"Can you hear it?"

"Not that I know of, no."

"Can you feel it?"

"In a spiritual kind of way maybe, but not physically."

"Can you smell it?"

"No, I can't."

"Do you believe in the existence of the soul?"

Connor thought for a moment, then nodded. "I guess I do," He said.

"So you believe in something that you cannot comprehend on any physical level, and that you have absolutely no physical proof exists at all. That is called faith."

Connor laughed, "Wonderful. So now that we've established I believe in something that clearly doesn't exist, what did you want to tell me?"

"Quite the opposite," Serac muttered dryly, "The soul does exist. The soul is more integral to magic than any physical material."

After a couple seconds of silence had passed, Connor took a stab at what Serac was saying, "When you first started showing me how to do this, this magic, you said that I needed to detach energy from inside myself and use that to manipulate and change the things around me. Are you telling me that the energy I've been using is actually my soul?"

"That is precisely what I am telling you."

"Whoa, hold on!" Connor held his hand up at Serac like a flimsy shield to block the income of unpleasant information, "You're telling me I've been burning off my soul to use magic!? That's not it, right? I mean, the energy I use comes back, it's not wasted forever, right?"

"The energy does not come back."

"Are you trying to kill me!?"

Serac began to twiddle a piece of grass between his fingers, watching as frost took hold of the defenseless green sliver. It quickly became brittle and snapped apart. He grabbed another blade and began again. "The amount of energy needed to perform magic is relatively small. In comparison to the soul, it is not even noticeable. You have been tearing off bits of your soul, it is true, but you could go your entire life casting spells and very little harm would be done."

"Well how much is very little?" The flustered youth asked, "I mean when we're talking about my immortal soul, here, any damage sounds bad!"

"The soul is not immortal. Though it would never die on its own, if enough magic was used, the soul of the caster would eventually run out. As far as the damage you asked of, you would not notice any difference, even after death. Not all souls are the same and some have a greater talent for conserving that magical energy, but no one has ever used so much magic that they destroyed their soul."

That comforted the boy, but he still had a red flag up, "But what if you pulled off too much of your soul, like in a life or death situation? What if I was fighting for my life and snapped, and just let loose all the magic I had in me?"

"That cannot happen," Serac stated, "So long as the soul is bound to life, it cannot be destroyed. It is only after the life ends that the soul can be destroyed, but this does not happen very often."

"So that's why no one's ever died for using too much magic, huh?"

"No one has ever gotten to the point where their soul could not take anymore use, so the life failsafe has never been an issue. Souls have been used and destroyed after the soul's life had come to an end, but a living person never destroyed their own soul through excessive magic use."

"So you're saying that you can use people's souls after they die for your own magic?"

The Wanderer gave a slight nod, "That is how souls get destroyed. When someone else takes them and uses them for their own power. Think for a moment, though. Can you imagine how powerful a spell would be if it were charged with an entire soul, rather than with a fragment? You can spend your entire life casting and barely scrape your own soul..."

"There's no way I'd ever dream of doing anything like that!" Connor balked at the idea of using someone else's soul for his own, "That's despicable! At the same time, though, you're right. It sounds like that kind of power would blow the world apart. Is that the magic you want to teach me? Because I don't want to know that kind."

"That kind of magic is simple, but effective. To do it you would use magic as you normally would, only channeling the captured soul, as opposed to your own. And no, that is not the magic of which I spoke. The magic you are to learn of is white and black magic."

"You told me a little about that kind of magic, I remember," Connor admitted, thinking back.

"_In all of us," Serac ignored the praise, "There is an energy that allows us to do these things. It is by detaching this energy from ourselves and using it to manipulate that which is around us that magic is performed. This energy is a part of who we are, and so the magic itself is like an extension of our being. A person so inclined to do right will find that it is reflected in his magic, because his magic is a part of him. A person inclined to do wrong will also see that of himself reflected in his abilities."_

"_So good and bad really do have their own sides of magic, then? I thought you said that it was like a tool that was as good as its wielder?"_

"_It is. I have shown you manipulation of simple elements, which is something any spell caster can accomplish with enough practice. There are spells that some cannot cast, however, due to who they are as a person. A man devoted to good works cannot be an embodiment of darkness," Serac stretched out his hand once again, shadows unfurling from his fingertips and encircling his arm with a low murmur that made Connor's ears pop, "And a child killer cannot be a bastion of light," Serac's other hand began to radiate a crackling white light that seemed to hiss at the darkness nearby._

"Yeah, I remember. So you're going to show me how to use those, today?"

"No, I am going to tell you what you need to do to be able to use one of them. You say you remember, and then imply you wish to use both. You cannot."

"Agh, you know what I mean!"

Serac stopped playing with the grass and turned to stare deep into Connor's eyes as he spoke, "To use this type of magic requires no material substances. It is a direct manifestation of your soul and of your intentions."

"And that's why each person can only use good or bad, white or black."

"Correct."

"Well why can't I do either one, yet?" Connor asked.

"You have not yet done anything to imprint who you are onto your soul. You are neither good nor bad, white nor black."

"So does that mean I have to do something to mark my soul, then? Like sign a blood oath, or something?"

The Sage shook his head, "To mark yourself is far more complicated than signing on a dotted line. You have to make a decision. A life-altering decision that does not only include you, but others. You have to make a sacrifice, or sacrifice someone else."

"Then you get marked?"

"Then you get marked."

-

Sayo took a moment to wonder, then said, "You said that you were only thinking about yourself when Russhe told you he was marrying Daisy. I don't understand why."

Connor twirled his hands around one another, looking for the best way to say it. He stumbled around it, but said, "I was thinking that if I let them get married, and not interfere, then I would be making a self-sacrifice. I wanted her. I wanted her more than anything. Except for one other thing. Power."

"But why? You never seemed like the power-hungry type, to me..."

"Just the chauvinistic type, I know," He replied with a forced smile, "But back then, when it was all new to me, I couldn't get enough of it. I barely slept, I only ate when Jack forced me or Serac 'suggested' it. I was practicing with one of them most of the time, and when I wasn't I was studying the books I was given. I wanted it all. I could taste it. I wanted to be someone. I wanted people to look at me like they looked at Russhe. And I knew I could do it. Every day I knew it even more, down in my gut. I was destined for great things. If that meant I had to sacrifice love, well...I was ready to do it."

"I'm not really convinced that you loved her," Sayo huffed, "You didn't even put up a fight for her and, honestly, you're not the kind of guy to fall in love right away!"

"Definitely not anymore. And I didn't say I never fought for her."

"Y-You mean...you did?"

"Even thinking about it makes my stomach hurt, but I did cave. The thought of her marrying my...marrying my friend and not me made me sick. I was so jealous. As time went by and the wedding got closer and closer, I started to hate Russhe. Why did he have all the recognition and money and family and love? Why did I have to give up love to get what I really wanted? Then I started to wonder what I really wanted. I started to think that this didn't have to be the sacrifice I needed to make. I mean, hell, there would be a lot of difficult choices in the future, right? I would have lots of opportunities to show my true colors. So why did I pick this one as the do or die ultimatum? Serac never told me this was what I had to do. So why? Why, why, why? And I cracked. I decided that I could always get more power, but I might not always be able to get love. I didn't even know that I would be able to, then, but I was going to try."

Sayo wanted to grab his hand, but felt too flip-floppy in her stomach to do so. "What happened?"

-

It was a black, black night. Rain was coming down in sheets, but no thunder or lightning accompanied it. The water felt gentle, even though it was a bit cold. This bolstered the young man's confidence. It was a good sign. Connor was standing outside Daisy's house, a bouquet of sopping wet, drooping daisies in one hand, and his heart in the other. All of the lights were out, so he wasn't sure his brilliant idea to sweep her off her feet would work. At least not now. Part of him wanted to give up and leave, but the other part wouldn't let him. This wasn't the time to be scared. It was now or never.

(Sayo shook her head and muttered, "You and ultimatums. I'm glad you grew out of that."

"Don't interrupt the story," Connor shot back.)

The question that remained was how to go about getting Daisy's attention without waking up her entire family. Pounding on the door, his initial first choice, was clearly not an option. Maybe if he found something small he could throw it at her window. Cliched, but effective. Before he could begin the search, however, a small light flickered to life from one of the second-story windows. It was in Daisy's room, no less. That's when the feeling in his chest swelled and made him feel light. Also scared. It was like fate.

He gave the tiniest of tiny taps on the door, waving up to the window like a madman. When nothing came of it, he repeated. The light in the window eventually dimmed and vanished, leaving him wondering. A moment later, the door opened up just a sliver and Daisy peeked out at him, "Connor? What are you doing here so late?" She opened the door, "Come on," She ushered him in while whispering, "You're gonna get sick!"

Connor did as he was beckoned, dragging mud in as he went. Daisy smacked him upside the head and whisper-yelled for him to take his boots off, which he promptly did. Once he was standing just inside the house, dripping puddles all over, she looked him in the face and broke out into a huge grin, "You look like you were swimming."

"Kind of feel like it, too, honestly," He replied with a quivery smile of his own.

"Hold on just a second, I'll start the fire," She promised him, heading further into the dark room. She disappeared into the black. A second later he heard a thump followed by a muffled yelp. He tried hard not to laugh, and a moment later the fire flickered to life. In the glowing yellow light, she waved him over. Connor shuffled across the room and got cozy by the fire. Daisy sat down a couple of yards away from him, holding her poor toe. "Stupid furniture," She groaned.

"I'll tell you, it moves around in the dark," Connor snickered.

"Keep laughing, you! It'll come back to haunt you!"

The young man shrugged, "Maybe. What are you doing up so late, by the way? It's gotta be at least midnight."

Daisy's smile dimmed away to a little frown, "I can't sleep."

"Nervous?"

"I guess so. Wouldn't you be? It's the biggest day of my life, after all. I'd rather it just snuck up on me and hit me right away. But no. We need to pick a day waaaayyyy off into the future and slowly approach it. The anticipation is probably the most nerve-wracking part. It gives you a lot of time to second-guess and scare yourself," Daisy explained.

"I know a little about second-guessing," Connor admitted shyly, "And you're right. A lot of it does come from when we have too much time to think about it. Sometimes, though," He quickly added, "It's good to rethink things."

"Ha, name one time you've rethought something and went through with the revised thought."

Connor put aside the one time he could remember, this particular time, and instead fell silent while praying he would think of something. No such luck.

"That's what I thought," Daisy chuckled.

"Hey, it's tough to come up with things on the spot! I mean, come on..."

"I know a little about being on the spot," She copied her friend, "And you're right. A lot of the time we say the wrong things when we're asked a question on the spot."

And there it was. A window. "Are you having doubts?"

"No," Daisy replied, "I don't know. What if this is all a big mistake? What if we fall out of love?"

"But you are still in love?" Connor almost stated it as much as he asked it. Daisy looked him in the eyes and nodded. The young man turned away from her and looked into the fire. "If you really love him, why are you questioning the marriage?"

There was a pause before she responded, "I guess I'm just afraid that there might be someone out there that's better for him. That he might leave me for someone else."

Still watching the softly crackling flames, Connor said, "So you're just afraid of being hurt. You don't doubt how you feel, at all."

"I don't."

Nodding to himself as if he had just come to an understanding of some kind, Connor fell silent. After several seconds of watching the fire dance in the young man's eyes, Daisy finally asked a question that had been sitting in the back of her mind since she saw him, "What's the story on the flowers? Did Jack upset another girl and send you on an apology run? Again?"

Connor grinned weakly, but shook his head, "No, these are mine."

Daisy mouthed the word 'oh' and leaned back further into her chair. And then the quiet turned into awkward silence. This wasn't enough to derail our already defeated friend.

"I came here, tonight," Connor slowly, with all of his resolve, brought his eyes back to hers, "To tell you that I love you." He paused for just a second to see if she would say anything. She did not, so he continued, "I have ever since the first time I saw you. And when I heard your voice, I knew I couldn't go another day without hearing it, again. I've tried so hard to let it go. I just can't. You have no idea how hard it is to count down the days until that one when I know I blew it and you're gone forever. Please don't do it. Don't."

Now Daisy was the one who has having difficulty with eye contact, "I'm not going away. I'll still be here."

"Come on. You could be living next door to me and still be out of my reach. That's just torture, and I can't do it. I won't. The thought of you marrying someone else honestly makes me sick to my stomach," Connor left the fire and got down by her chair, "I'm begging you, please don't marry Russhe. Give me a chance."

"Connor," Daisy took his hands into her own, "You're one of my closest friends, and you mean so much to me. Bearing that in mind, do you really love me?"

"With everything in me, I do."

"Then stop it," She whispered, eyes locked on his, "I already told you I was scared about the wedding. I need you to be my friend, right now."

Connor clenched her hands tighter in his own, "But I can't. I can't just be your friend. I want more than that...I need more than that!"

Daisy pursed her lips into a frown and said, "If you really loved me, you would quit thinking about yourself and put me first. I love you, too, and you know that, but it's Russhe...it's Russhe that I want to spend the rest of my life with."

Connor let go of her hands, inching away from her as if what she had just said offended him greatly, though it only hurt. Anger creeping into his voice, he asked, "What does Russhe have that I don't? Why does he get to be with you? Can you tell me? Please, explain it to me! Why do you love him more?"

With a sad, but beautiful, smile, Daisy calmly said, "I've loved him ever since the first time I saw him. And when I heard his voice, I knew I couldn't go another day without hearing it, again. I just always have, and I always will, Connor."

And he finally understood. It was for Daisy exactly like it was for him. She could never love him back like he loved her. With that understanding came no comfort, no solace that he now found himself so desperate for. He rubbed away the tears on his cheeks and in his eyes.

"Do you love me?" Daisy asked for the second time.

Sniffling, Connor nodded.

"And you want me to be happy?"

"Of course I do."

Daisy smiled at him, "Then you've got to be happy for me, ok? I don't want to talk about this, again, and I don't want Russhe to find out, either. We're like an odd little family, the four of us." Connor scoffed, but she went on, "And it's very important to me that we all stay close. Can you promise me you'll do those things for me?"

Connor stood up and went for the door. Even if it killed him, he'd be her friend if that's what she needed from him. "I promise," He whispered, opening the door. "This night never happened, ok?"

He opened the door, but Daisy's voice stopped him, "Connor, do you know why Russhe asked you not to enlist?"

Frowning, Connor replied, "Because we already have one hero and don't need another? I don't know."

"No. He asked you not to enlist because he cares about you. Just because he's not fighting in the war doesn't mean he's done fighting. He can't even sleep, sometimes, because it's all he can think about. Don't resent him because he doesn't want you to hurt like he hurts, now."

The young man lowered his eyes, then said, "Goodnight, Daisy."

She nodded, smiling sadly, "I'll talk to you, soon."

Connor smiled back, then left. Gingerly, he closed the door behind him. His smile vanished with the click of the lock. He dropped the flowers in the mud and walked out into the cool rain. It was a black, black night. Rain was coming down in sheets, and thunder was off in the distance.

-

"When was the next time you saw her?" Sayo asked, her tone low.

Connor shook his head, "I never saw her, again. Not alive, anyway."

Taken aback, the ghost asked, "What? I thought you said you killed her?"

"I did. I saw it all, but I couldn't really _see_ it. I was thinking about myself. How difficult it was for me to be in the position I was in, how unfair it was that she didn't love me, how much I hated Russhe, how I had begged her to be with me and gotten rejected. I was angry. Blind. The part that made sure everything happened the way it did, though, was how self-centered I was. I was so focused on me that I ignored everything she was trying to tell me. All the signs, I ignored them all. I went right back to plan A. Live without her and try to be happy for the both of them, even though I didn't think I ever could."

"What did you ignore? Is there something you didn't tell me?"

"No, Casper, I've told you everything, so far. Uh..." He took a deep breath and held it for a moment before exhaling, "A couple of weeks after that talk I had with her, Daisy asked to speak to the two of us, me and Jack. She wanted to meet up for dinner, somewhere, but I didn't go. I hadn't seen her since and I didn't want to see her, then. Jack wasn't happy with me about it but, hey, you can't please everyone. The next day he came to me to talk about it."

-

The smaller of the two slammed the book shut, "Would you put that damned thing away for five minutes and talk to me?"

Connor reopened the book and sent a glance at Jack through the corner of his eye, "I'm busy."

The boy grabbed the book and threw it across the basement, sending it careening into the far wall. The candles rippled at the sudden disturbance, but quickly went back to straight and unperturbed. "Guess you're not, now, huh?"

"What is it, Jack? I'm really not in the mood for a heart-to-heart right now."

"Good," The boy shot back, "Neither am I. Why the hell didn't you come to dinner, last night?"

"Wasn't hungry."

"I'm being serious. Why weren't you there? She called us together because she needed us."

Connor narrowed his eyes and barked back, "You know why I wasn't there!"

Jack nodded, going nose to nose with Connor when the older one rose out of his chair, "Yeah, I do. Because you're a selfish bastard, that's why!"

Connor shoved his smaller company away, yelling, "You don't know what it's like! You don't know what's in my head or how I feel, so don't think you can come down here and pass judgement on ME!"

Jack came back and pushed Connor even harder, sending the older boy into the desk, "Of course I know what it's like! So she's getting married! Big deal! At least she's still alive! And I never pushed all my friends away! They were all taken from me, and I'll be damned if I'm gonna let everything here fall apart because of the same shitty war! Don't you DARE tell me I don't know what it's like. You have absolutely no idea what it means to suffer!"

Connor gritted his teeth and squinted through the tears forming in his eyes. He swung a fist into Jack's jaw, but the younger boy could have cared less. He grabbed Connor by the shirt and threw him up against the wall where he held him, staring him in the face, "Maybe I don't know what you're thinking," He hissed, "But I do know that like it or not, you and I are the closest thing we have to family. I'm not gonna sit back and watch you throw everything away so you can sit here in the goddamned dark with your stupid books! Look, you're like my brother. I'd die for you. But I need you to get over being angry. I need you to quit shutting yourself off down here. And it's not just me. Russhe and Daisy need you, too. Especially now."

Still up against the wall, Connor asked, "What did she want?"

Jack let his friend go, backing off a step, "It's Russhe. He's been taking medication to help himself sleep."

"She told me he'd been having nightmares, yeah. So? Let him take the medication."

"But it's not just that, anymore. He's started taking stronger stuff."

"So?"

"Stuff that you need a needle for."

Connor shook his head, "He's taking what?"

Jack shrugged, "I don't know, man. The war really messed him up. I guess it's just been eating away at him, and it's not getting better. She said he takes the drugs to calm himself down. To forget, really. I guess it's been going on for awhile, too. Now it's getting bad. Even I can tell, now."

"Russhe was there? Did he say anything?"

Jack shook his head, "No, Russhe wasn't there. I meant I could tell by Daisy. Her eyes were so dark, there were bruises on her arms, and she was just...just shaking, man. She looked terrible."

"Are you telling me," The older one asked, "That she's taking these things, too?" When Jack nodded the affirmative, Connor started to raise his voice again, "Why is she taking them?"

"I don't know. Maybe she needs an escape from the nightmare Russhe is going through. Maybe she's scared and made a mistake."

"And we're just now figuring this out? Why the hell hasn't anyone done anything about it?"

"You think we're just now figuring this out? No, man, YOU'RE just now figuring it out. If we ever talked anymore you'd know about it. I haven't told you out of respect for her..."

"What about respect for me? Don't you think I'd want to know about this?"

"I can't even tell with you, anymore," Jack admitted, "And I mean it's not like you've expressed any interest in any of us, lately, anyway. Daisy checked into the hospital to get help about two weeks ago, after that night you went to see her." Connor tried to interrupt, but his friend cut him off, "Yeah, she told me about it. Come on, it's not like I didn't know, anyway. She was up that night looking for a new spot to put the needle, I'd wager. I don't know why you couldn't tell something was wrong, but it definitely was."

Ashamed of himself, Connor tried not to think about that night. Instead, he asked, "If Daisy was out, last night, does that mean she's out of the hospital?"

"Yeah. She's been out for a couple of days. Man, you can already tell she's back on the stuff. Both of them. It's gonna kill them if they don't quit. She asked me for help, Connor. I don't even know how I can. I mean, for god's sake, I'm only fourteen. My biggest problem should be wondering if that girl I like notices me or trying to hide a zit," He put his face in his hands and dragged them down in exasperation, "Look, I can't keep everything together by myself. They need help, and yeah they've got family, but they need us, too. I don't want things to fall apart. I want them to get married and be happy. I want you to stop focusing on this magic that Serac's got you obsessed with. I want...I just want everything to be ok, man. I need to know that sometimes things work out."

Connor nodded, though his expression was grim. Slowly, he said, "They need to get married, you're right. But..."

"But?"

"I'm sorry," He whispered, stepping around Jack. He crossed the room and picked up his book, "I can't be the one to fix it. I love Daisy, but I just can't see her. And Russhe...I'm trying real hard not to hate him."

"Connor, please..." Jack asked, his voice cracking.

"I'm sorry."

-

"And you just left him?" Sayo could barely believe her partner, "How could you be so heartless?"

Head bowed, Connor muttered, "I never said I was proud of the things I did. I never said I did the right thing, either. If you don't want to hear the rest, just say so. Take me to the goddamned grave."

The ghost thought for a lengthy time, then said, "I still want to hear the rest. I need to know what happened."

The man in black took a few minutes to sit and think about what happened. He felt very heavy as he did this. Heavy, but hollow. "A few days later..." He whispered, "Jack came to me, again. The wedding was in a week, at this point. Despite the trouble they were having, and even though they'd tried to get help during the engagement, Russhe and Daisy never put off the date. Daisy's family, Jack told me, was worried about her because she hadn't come home the previous night. Even though they were engaged, they still slept in each other's respective homes. Russhe's family was very formal about that sort of thing, even though he didn't live with them, anymore. Jack was scared. He was afraid that something bad happened to her. He was so worked up, that I actually went with him."

"Why did you decide to go with him, then, when you wouldn't help him, before?" Sayo asked.

"Because it was only one week away. I just needed for them to be ok for one more week. Once they got married, I would get what I wanted. I would imprint my soul with that personal sacrifice, and get the most powerful kind of magic I could get. I couldn't have Daisy, but I could still have that."

"That's horrible..." The girl stated, her voice hushed. "You were still after that, even though she really needed your help? And poor Jack, too?"

He lifted his gaze to hers and continued, "So I went with him to Russhe's house."

-

"He's not answering," Jack groaned, pounding on the door even harder.

"Maybe they're not here," Connor suggested, looking around for some sign that they were or were not home.

The younger one continued to thump on the door, "He didn't tell me he'd be going anywhere! And where do you think he is, then? No one's seen him, today!"

"They could have eloped," The older one guessed, "I don't know."

Jack grunted, then lifted a leg up. With a mighty thrust, he busted the door right off of its hinges, "Russhe?" He called, stepping inside the dark house, "Are you here? Are you ok?"

Connor followed his friend, looking down on either side of him at the splintered and ruined door, "Great."

They both paused briefly when they heard a murmur from somewhere in the house. Someone was talking, somewhere in the building. "Russhe?" Jack asked no one, "Daisy? Where are you?" Connor and Jack split up and covered the first floor in a matter of seconds.

"Jack," Connor called, waving him over to a door, "I think it's coming from in here." He opened the door when his friend was near, and it revealed a staircase that led into an even darker part of the house. Sure enough, once the door was open they could hear the voice clearly. It was Russhe. They trotted down the stairs and into the darkness.

"Are you alright, man?" Jack asked as he reached the floor. It wasn't bright enough that he could see much, but what he did see scared him. It stopped him in his tracks.

Connor nearly bumped into him coming down, but slid around, instead. "Are you guys ok?" He asked loudly, eyes falling on Russhe. He was laying on the ground, head propped up against the wall. His once handsome face was now sunken and unshaven. His eyes were a dark red, his lips were cracked and bleeding. Daisy was lying beside him, staring up at the ceiling. She was pale as Death himself. Her mouth was hanging open. She wasn't moving.

"DAISY!" Connor shouted, rushing over to her, "NO! No, no, no! Say something!" He sucked in a mouthful of air and pressed his mouth over her cold lips.

"Honey, look," Russhe muttered, "It's our buddies...Say hi, baby..."

Connor started to push on her chest, "COME ON! Come on, come on! BREATHE!" He put his mouth back to hers.

"I know, honey, he's too loud...Connor, don't be so loud..."

"YOU CAN'T DIE!" He screamed, slamming her chest with both hands, "THERE'S NOTHING IF YOU'RE GONE! BREATHE!"

"Don't hit my wife," Russhe mumbled, nudging Connor's shoulder, "She's sleeping."

Connor released Daisy, letting her dead body lie. He lunged onto Russhe, pummeling his face and screaming at him, "YOU KILLED HER! YOU KILLED HER! YOU HAD EVERYTHING AND DESTROYED IT ALL!" Blood started to spatter the wall and floor, but Connor didn't stop. Again and again his fist came back down, each impact more hateful than the last. As he beat the life out of his friend, the darkness around him began to twist and turn, hissing in malevolent pleasure. Jack, rooted down by shock and horror, watched as the black basement filled with furling shadows and the pungent scent of blood. When Connor finally did stop, he was soaked in blood and shaking uncontrollably. He rolled off of Russhe's unrecognizable body and crawled away, choking up vomit as he went.

As if in a trance, Jack stumbled towards his two dead friends and fell to his knees. He laid down in the blood between them, putting an arm around both bodies. "My family," He whispered, tears running down his face, "All gone. We all killed ourselves...All gone, again..."

Still shaking, Connor climbed to his feet, using the wall to steady himself. He stood there for what felt like forever, thinking, listening to Jack weep. There was nothing left. Daisy was dead, he was a murderer, and he could feel the darkness swelling inside of him, begging to come out. He raised a hand, snapped his fingers, and set fire to the house. Walking slowly as though he had all the time in the world, he laid down next to Daisy, and watched the ceiling over him burn.

"I'm sorry," Connor whispered.

Jack didn't say anything back.

"You can still get out. You don't need to die here."

The young boy then replied, "The people I love are in here. And only one of them is still breathing. Probably not for much longer. I don't want to get out. But I have to ask you, do you really think Russhe is anymore to blame for her death than you or me?"

"No," The older one replied, "This is my fault, just as much as it is his. I didn't even try to save her...We're both murderers."

Jack sat up, rolling Russhe's body over. He pulled the black jacket off of him, still soaked in his blood, and passed it over Daisy's body to Connor. "This is the clothing of a murderer. Since you're a murderer, you should wear it. I want you to remember that you killed my family," Jack whispered, watching Connor put the bloody jacket on, "And I want you to know that even after that, I still love you like a brother. And even if you're ready to die," He rose to his feet, "I'm not ready to let you." He kicked Connor in the face, hurling him into unconsciousness.

-

"I don't know what happened, after that. When I woke up, I was here in this world. Serac hasn't told me, and I don't even know if I want to find out," Connor admitted, making damned sure not to look at Sayo.

The girl asked, "What about Jack? Do you at least know if he's ok?"

"I don't know. I'm guessing he carried me out of the house, but I don't know what happened after that."

"That was a very long story," Sayo remarked, getting off her big rock and stretching.

"...Wh-What? That's it?"

"I do have another question, though," The ghost announced, raising a finger, "Now I know the story about your jacket, but how on earth did you get your headband?"

And she did it. Something he thought was impossible at that moment in time. She made him laugh. "Casper, wow, that's a story for another time. You don't...you're ok with all of that? What I did, I mean..."

Sayo put both of her hands on his shoulders and looked him dead in the eye, "There's no way you could have guessed all of that stuff would happen. Even if you had done things differently, it probably would have happened, anyway. I don't care about what you did back then, because I know you're really a good guy. And who cares if you have black magic? As long as you use it for good things, then it doesn't matter. I'm your partner, and I'm going to stick with you no matter what."

"Sayo..." Connor turned around to hide himself, "Oh, God, I am not getting emotional. You have got to be kidding me."

"A-Are you ok, Connor-sensei?"

"Yup, I'm good. Don't look at me, yet," He muttered, tilting his head back to make sure nothing came out of his eyes, "I've got a good eighteen things in my eye, right now. Just take me to the grave, ok?"

Sayo laughed, "Actually, we're already there," She stated, pointing at the rock, "It's under this."

Connor quickly badassed the emotions away and started to push the rock. It inched across the dirt until Sayo said it was ok to stop. He put his hands to the ground and stirred up the dirt until he found a handle, which he gripped tightly. He jerked the hidden latch open, dirt spilling all around as he did. There was a ladder leading down into what looked to be pitch black forever. "Well I'll be," He whistled, "Thousand Master, here I come."

_--Author's other note: That was by far the largest chapter I've ever written. I didn't think I could break it into two chapters very well, either, which is what I would normally do, so sorry about that. Anyway, there are no more Connor info chapters. We're actually done character-developing for awhile, and back into the plot. Which is good news for everyone. Thanks for reading...--_


	27. Life In A Bottle

_-----Author's note: This one gets pretty philosophical. And I'm not gonna lie, most of this was written well after I should have been asleep. I love you all. Forewarned. I do not own Negima, but any other characters and ideas are my own. Enjoy.....-----_

"Don't look up!"

"Casper, you've only got a tail! Even if I did look up, I wouldn't see-"

Sayo shrieked in girlish terror as she started to beat Connor on the head and shoulders with the aforementioned tail, "I said don't look!"

"Ugh! Sayo, w-wait! Stop, no! Aaahhh!" Losing his grip on the rickety iron ladder, the man in black plummeted for a solid second before his back met the ground. Sayo floated down the rest of the way and plopped onto his stomach in a sitting position.

"That's what perverts get, Connor-sensei," She said cutely.

In a hoarse voice, Connor replied, "I'm not sure if I should be more upset about the grave thing you pulled up there, or the physical abuse."

"You mean you don't like it?"

He pushed Sayo off and up into the air, "Not so much, sweetheart."

"I thought you liked your women tough and smart!"

"You know I'm forced to ask you, where the hell did you get that idea?"

"Scary mask!"

".....Yep, you lost me."

"Look!" The girl yelped, pointing and backing away.

Connor jerked his sword out of its scabbard and whipped around, bringing the blade down hard at the Angel behind him. The person in the black robe caught him by the wrist, and the next thing he knew he was standing on water. Connor's legs collapsed from beneath him and he flopped onto the ground in surprise. He opened his eyes, realizing he was lying on the ground. Solid ground.

"Connor-sensei!" Sayo gasped, activating her ring. They switched places, which put Connor about four feet in the air, laying down on nothing. He fell flat on his face with a thud.

"Relax," The Angel muttered in a feminine voice. It had a monotonous quality to it, not unlike Serac's, "If I wanted to kill you, you'd be dead already."

"You bad guys need less generic lines," Connor gave a free pointer while he climbed back to his feet.

"Cute. Now if you would kindly follow me, Nagi is waiting." At this point, the Angel turned and started down the dark tunnel that lay before them.

Sayo looked to Connor for what to do and, hesitantly, she followed him when he followed the Angel. The ghost flinched when Connor lit up a ball of revolving embers over his outstretched palm. This allowed her enough light that Sayo could see the walls on either side of her, but no hint of anything but skittering darkness and the swaying cloak of the enemy. The trio went on for quite some time in unperturbed silence. The nervous ghost was dismayed to find Connor was only making himself useful as far as a torch. Otherwise, his eyes were passive and his free hand was stuck in his pocket. Why wasn't he paying more attention? They might be in extreme danger!

Despite her anxieties, they kept walking. The tunnel continued to slope downwards, and the temperature along with it. Sayo reached out to trace the chilly, curved wall when it began to look slick with dew, or water, or whatever it was wet with. Her fingers, only through great effort on her part, soon began to trace huge, deeply etched symbols. They radiated a pallid light as strong as a lightning bug in June.

"Connor-sensei," She hissed to her teacher, "What are these?"

"They are Greek writings," The Angel answered before Connor could admit he didn't know, "They are all of the conversations Socrates had while alive. Saved for posterity."

"Down here where no one can see them?" Connor asked, eyebrow raised.

"Not your posterity," The guide retorted.

"Right. Of course. Silly me," The man in black mumbled, dismissing the glow in his hand. With a clearly restrained tone, Connor asked, "So why is all of this down here?"

Without even a slight hesitation, the Angel replied, "For future posterity."

"I mean why are all of his conversations scratched into the walls? Socrates in particular," He hastily added when he feared the Angel was about to repeat herself, again, "I'm trying to say."

"Socrates led a virtuous life. That is why."

Sayo, proud to once again display her knowledge, piped up, "But did Socrates ever truly discover what virtue was? In the Meno dialogue, he clearly claims that he does not know what virtue is, and Meno is never able to convince him of what virtue actually is. They seem to agree that they know what some of the qualities of virtue are but that they can't discern something by some of it's qualities, alone."

"Uh, what?" Connor asked sheepishly, giving Sayo a perplexed look.

"It's like.....If I said that.....hm.....that Kurasama-sensei was very handsome, how would you know?"

"I wouldn't. I have no idea who that is."

"Exactly! You know what it is to be handsome, but you don't know Kurasama-sensei. Just because you know one of his qualities doesn't mean you know him. That's what Socrates said about virtue," Sayo smiled when Connor flashed a toothy grin and nodded once in understanding, "Just because he knew some of its qualities did not mean he knew virtue."

"Casper makes a good point. How come you say that Socrates led a virtuous life?"

"I do not say that Socrates led a virtuous life," The Angel replied blandly, "Indeed, I know very little of him."

"Like hell," Connor groaned, "You just said he did, and that's why these etchings are down here!"

"I was only repeating what I was told."

"And who told you that?"

"The God."

"God told you that? Are you nuts?"

Sayo interrupted once again, "She didn't say God, Connor-sensei. She said 'The God'. The God was a voice in Socrates' head that always told him what not to do, but it never told him what he should do. But that doesn't mean that she actually talked to the God, right?"

"Funny how the ghost knows more than her 'sensei'," The Angel mocked in her bored tone.

"But is she right?" Connor asked, curious enough that he didn't get mad at the comment, "Did you actually talk to that thing? Is it real?"

Rather suddenly, the tunnel came to an end. A winding staircase made of stone took its place. It was small and confined, not to mention dark. The etchings gave only just enough light for them to see where their feet would be falling. Untroubled, the Angel began the descent, her two followers close behind. "The God is very real," She replied, "It considered Socrates' life virtuous and as such created this tomb for him after his death, detailing it."

"But it's just a demon, right?"

"On the contrary. It's a god."

"Yeah, that's where I draw the line," Connor snapped, "There's no way that you spoke with a god. It's a demon or a shape shifter, just like mommy dearest was."

The Angel ceased her descent and turned around, this being the first time that their march had been halted. Through her grinning theater mask, she stared him in the eyes and said, "Our Mother was perhaps not a god," She admitted, "But she will be when she wakes up. And then we'll see if you can make such impertinent comments when your tongue is ripped out of your skull."

Sayo skirted up close behind her teacher, peeking at the icy woman from over his shoulder. Connor met her stare with one just as unpleasant, though he was a little shaken.

"Then we'll see," The Angel repeated, turning back around and resuming the walk.

Once he felt the lump in his throat disappear, Connor asked, "What the hell are you doing down here, anyway? And why are you still parading around like a cultist freak? That game's long over, sweetheart."

"I am here to lead you to the Thousand Master," The Angel replied, "Sweetheart."

With a shake of his head, Connor asked, "What, so you've been planning on me coming here all along?"

"Indeed."

"Great, so it's a trap."

"Not at all," The Angel calmly responded, stepping out of the staircase and into a massive cavern.

Sayo and Connor stepped out after her, looking around in awestruck wonder. The engravings in the walls were everywhere, even above them, casting about their strangely attractive glow, though these ones shimmered with a radiance the others had lacked. From out of the stone on either side of a straight pathway rose pretty little trees, though pretty was as befitting a word as eerie. The trunks and branches were white as untouched snow, and the leaves above were black as death. They stood perfectly still in the ambient quiet, as peaceful as they possibly could be. And again, their march resumed as if it had never been hindered.

"It's like we've walked into a different world," Sayo wowed, eyes slowly scanning back and forth, taking in as much as she could.

"It's not a trap, huh?" Connor continued his conversation with the Angel, "Then why are you just leading me right where I want to go? Or are you leading me the wrong way, entirely?"

"So untrusting."

"Not like I've got much other choice."

"I am leading you there because that is what Mother asked for me to do," The woman stated, "Nothing more, nothing less."

More than a little taken aback by this, Connor asked, "You mean before I killed her?"

The guide flinched, but otherwise disregarded that. She nodded, "She told me that you would come to reclaim a soul, and that I was not to hinder you."

"You've gotta be kidding me. How did she know I would come here?"

"Her advisor told her that you would come here after killing her, and that it would be best for everyone if we did not interfere."

Sayo, from beside him, gave Connor a concerned look.

"And what's the advisor's name?"

"I do not know."

'_That's just great,' _Connor thought, _'I sure know who it sounds like, though. But why would the Mother let me kill her? That's what it sounds like this nut job is saying. She let me kill her, and before that even happened she made sure I would be allowed to waltz right in and get Asakura back. Something weird is going on, definitely.'_

The time continued to pass, the bitterness in the air continued to ferment. They came to a shoddy-looking rope bridge which crossed a chasm filled with glowing green liquid. Connor peeked over and down into the goo, then at the bridge, which the Angel was already well onto. He wanted to complain, but she was doing it, so he could to. To try and take his mind off of the fact that he was crossing a rickety bridge over certain death or horrific mutation, he asked, "So what was that move you pulled on me back there?"

"Move?" The Angel asked sourly.

"When you made my legs go limp. I would have sworn I didn't have half my body, or I was falling. It was like the ground disappeared on me."

"Perhaps you're just clumsy."

"Yeah, and perhaps you're full of sh-"

"Do you recall Higure?"

"Who?" Connor asked, his leg punching through one of the wooden planks. He gripped both sides of the bridge and bit his tongue, but was fine otherwise. Sayo swooned, but continued to follow.

"The man that you, the girl, and the Thousand Master's son killed at Library Island. Do you remember him?" The Angel clarified.

"Oh, yeah. What about him?"

"His name was Higure, and he had an ability that you would consider rather unique, yes?"

"Shape-shifting. Fun. So what?"

The woman explained, "He was one of our Mother's Apostles."

Connor scoffed, "You mean generals, right?"

"If you prefer that word, very well. He was one of the twelve closest to our Mother, and as such he was gifted a power from Her to help fulfill Her dream. Shape-shifting."

"Hm, and I guess you're gonna tell me now that you're another one of these twelve Apostles, right?"

"That is correct. My name is Shiori."

"Well, Shiori, what is your special power? You make people temporary cripples?"

The Angel crossed onto solid ground, and then waited for Connor and Sayo to make it across as well. "My 'special power' is that I cannot feel anything..." She reached out and her fingertips grazed Connor's cheek, sending a tingling feeling throughout his body, "But I can make those I touch feel anything I want. Would you like to know what it feels like to have an arm blown off?" Connor wrenched himself away before anything like that could happen. "No?" Shiori sighed, "Maybe a little dental torture?"

"I think I'll pass."

"You're no fun."

"You want to talk to me about fun? You can make people feel whatever you want and you're talking about pain. I'd be doing something else with that, love." He made an 'urk' sound when Sayo bopped him on the head.

A gray castle rose up to meet them as they continued down the pathway, exhausted of one another's company. The Angel motioned to the nondescript structure, indicating that their companionship was finally to draw to a close.

"What, you don't wanna come with?" Connor asked.

"I have performed my duty. Now I wash my hands of you." The unpleasant woman turned on her heels and slowly started back down the path.

Sayo waited for her to be out of earshot before she asked, "Before...What did she mean when she said 'when she wakes up'?"

"I don't know," He replied, ascending the stairs to the double-doors, "Probably nothing. She was nuts, if you ask me.." Connor raised his hand and grabbed hold of the ringlike knocker. Sayo caught his arm and stopped him for a moment.

"Wait," She pled. Connor could pick out the trepidation in her voice like the unwanted bits in his food. Her voice wavering, she said, "I'm scared."

"Join the club, cupcake," He sighed, trying to knock a second time, and once again failing under her restraint.

"What if something bad happens?"

"Relax, it'll....." He trailed off. He wasn't sure what to say. Sayo wasn't stupid. She knew it wouldn't 'be ok'. There was a good chance someone was going to get hurt. And even if it wasn't Connor, it would be Negi's dad. Neither of those were good, and they both knew it.

"You're not going to hurt him, right? I mean, he's Negi-sensei's dad, after all."

Connor grunted in response, "You don't know this, but Negi's dad is supposed to be a real badass. I mean, if anything I've heard about him is true then you should be more worried about him hurting me."

Sayo then said, "This is very scary.....I don't want either of you to get hurt. C-Can you promise me that you won't fight?"

Connor released the knocker and took a step back. He sat down on the topmost stair, and Sayo sat down beside him. "Sayo, we came all this way just for this. We flew halfway around the world for this. I nearly drowned in a bathroom for this. I nearly got killed by drug dealers for this. You were right there next to me for all of that," Sayo tried to interrupt him, but he held up a hand to shush her, "And don't you even try and say something about how I tried to keep you at arm's length in Athens, because you wound up being the linchpin in our success. You even helped me get here. Now that we're here, we just can't turn back. Even if there's a chance, hell, a likelihood, that things will go badly, we can't stop. I can't promise you I won't fight, but I'll promise you that it'll be a last resort."

Sayo hugged his arm, "But what if he doesn't let you have it? We came all this way, I know, but we came here together! We weren't ever alone! If something happens to you....."

"Look, Asakura is waiting for us. She's right in this building, here! If he won't give it to me, then I'll just take her soul from him! I'll die trying before I give up and abandon her. This is all I've got, left, Sayo. This is all I can think about"

"But what about me?" The girl demanded, "What will I have if this doesn't work? I can't go back alone....." She whispered, her grip tightening, "If something happens to you, I can't get back home. I'll be lost....."

Connor didn't say anything.

"If he hurts you really bad.....I'll be all alone, again. You would do that to me?"

He cast his eyes downward.

"You're always thinking about Asakura, but what about me? Have you even thought about what would happen to me if I was by myself? Maybe you're not going to hold onto anything and go all kamikaze, but I'm still holding on to you so you're dragging me along with you!" Connor tried to interrupt her, but she shook her head no, "And don't you even say that I should let go! I can't go back to being alone! I will not! Whether you like it or not you have someone who needs you, now! And that means that you can't jump at the opportunity to be a martyr every chance you get!"

"Hey, I don't jump-"

Sayo squealed over him, "And how DARE you say that this is all you've got left!? So am I nothing!? Do you even think before you say stuff like that!?"

SMACK.

Connor's head whipped around under Sayo's palm, and they froze in that position. Sayo's outstretched arm, Connor hunched to the side, blinking stupidly. They were like that for several seconds before the man asked, "So, what, that's it?"

"Sh-Should I hit you again?"

"No, I was just.....kind of expecting you to do a one-eighty and apologize for hitting me, and asking me if I was alright."

Sayo shook her head, "No, you really deserved that one."

"Yeah," He agreed, "I guess I kinda did."

They both returned to normal sitting positions and didn't talk. Connor's cheek hurt, but the throbbing was already down to an unpleasant warm sensation, so it wasn't too bad. What Sayo had said was hard to hear, but he could see where she was coming from.

"You might be ready to die....."

Jack flashed through his head and he closed his eyes.

"But I'm not ready to let you."

He licked his dry lips and ran his hand through his hair before asking, "So you're telling me that I can't let things go badly, because it's bad for you?"

Sayo rubbed the tears out of her eyes, "That's right."

"Never pegged you for the selfish type, sweetheart."

"I guess you're starting to rub off on me."

"Yeah, yeah, I'm the bad guy. Let's get this over with," He grabbed one of the knockers, Sayo along with him. Together, they pounded on the massive door. Slowly, with a long and drawn out moan, the door creaked open to allow them entry. Inside the castle-like building was vastly different than the entirety of the tomb in its grandeur. Plain, dusty stones made up the rather crooked looking floor on which they stood. The ceiling, which was made of a rather darkly colored wood, was clearly warped. Staircases of a decrepit nature led both up and down to places unseen. What was of interest were the walls, which were blocked by shelves of round-bottomed bottles from the floor to the ceiling. The bottles appeared empty, but one could make out a slight multi-colored haze if the light hit them, right. This was a feat, in and of itself, as light was very sparse in the castle. There were no symbols inside to provide the helpful glow, as outside.

Neither of the partners spoke. Absorbed in the destitution around them, all they could do was look. And then, startling both, a voice rang out, "Thank god! I was starting to think you weren't ever gonna show!" As the voice died, footsteps took its place. Sayo couldn't pinpoint which direction they were coming from, and she guessed Connor couldn't either, judging from his darting eyes. And all too fast, they could see him. He didn't try to hide, or to scare them, even intimidate them. It was like looking into the future.

"He's the spitting image of you," Connor muttered, watching Nagi slowly emerge from the darkness atop one of the sets of stairs.

"It really is Negi-sensei's dad," Sayo whispered, almost surprised.

Nagi dropped at the bottom stair and sat there, looking at his new company. After a moment of sizing him up, the Thousand Master declared, "Well for all the hoopla everybody raises about you, I'd have to say that my first impression after meeting you is that you're a pussy."

Startled, Connor snapped back, "Well, you're a dick!"

"Then we should get along famously together, huh? I knew I liked you for some reason..." He laughed at his own joke and then said, "But really, I can't believe She had me guard the place this whole time when you're the only one to have come down here."

"I can't believe you're actually helping her. For one, she's dead. Two, aren't you supposed to be some kind of 'hero of the people'?" He folded his arms, "Why suddenly the bad guy?"

Nagi waved a hand, "The girls dig a bad boy."

"Your son doesn't."

"Don't bring the brat into this, geez. Now that's just not cool." When he saw that Connor was going to wait for an answer, he said, "I don't think I'm doing the right thing. But I'm ok with doing the wrong thing for the right reasons. You go ahead and judge me if you want, but I'd be careful. You're not so safe in your glass house."

"Maybe not, but at least child abandonment isn't on my list," Connor stabbed.

Through a forced grin came the reply, "Oh, really? That's not what everyone else thinks," Nagi shook his head at Connor's apparent surprise, "Come on, you really didn't think we were watching you? By the way, that scene in the streets for the freckle-faced cutie was touching. Really something else."

"You've been watching me for that long?"

"I've been waiting for you for two-and-a-half weeks, buddy. Since Big Momma kicked it, I've been playing guard dog."

"And I don't understand that. Why horde all of the souls? Why not just let them move on?"

Nagi laid out on his side on the step, "Wow, you're pretty clueless, huh kid? Because She needs them for later." He admired the confusion on Connor's face then said, "For when She comes back, genius."

"...What?"

"Look, here's the skinny. Mama became corporeal using all of those souls the Angels helped Her gather specifically so She could die a mortal death. Twenty-one days later, or three days in hell for each cardinal sin, She will be reborn into the holy vessel at the exact moment in time when a certain pregnant woman kills herself. I know, I know, why do all this crap to be a real girl, then die so you could be a real girl again. It's messy, it's got a lot of rules, a bunch of weird stuff goes into all of it. But when She comes back this time around, She's going to be a deity. A god. A god with a mission."

"WHAT!?"

"Hey, hey, hey," Nagi frowned, "There's no need to get noisy. You want me to tell you what's what, or what?" Connor shut his mouth, so Nagi went on, "You see, the Mother is what they call a Dreamer. A Dreamer is someone or something that has the potential to become an honest to god...well, god. Right now, She's sleeping. When She wakes up, after twenty-one days, she won't be a Dreamer anymore."

"So she's basically going to be a super-demon. Is that what you're trying to tell me?"

"Well, not exactly," Nagi shrugged a little, "Maybe I should let the big guy fill you in on this one..."

"And is 'the big guy' the person behind me?" Connor asked, glancing over his shoulder.

Sayo whipped around, gawking at who was actually leaning against the door. "Mana!?"

Connor blinked once, then twice, then turned around. "Well I'll be a son of a bitch," He remarked, "How have you been, princess? Shoot many other unsuspecting guys in the back, lately?"

"Hello, Connor-sensei," Mana replied smoothly, "And no. You're just special to me."

"Yeah, special my ass. How about you go stand next to that traitor over there. Believe it or not, I'd rather not have you behind me."

"Connor-sensei..." Sayo mumbled.

"Yeah, it's alright, Mana. I don't think we're gonna have a fight, anyway," Nagi gave the go ahead. Mana obliged Connor's request, and headed towards Nagi. As she passed him, Connor reached into his jacket and pulled out the twin pair of desert eagles he'd been carrying around. He handed them out to her, and she took them while passing.

"So you found them, huh? Thought they might help."

Connor snorted, "Don't go trying to act like a slick double-agent or whatever the hell else. I took them from the closet, now I'm giving them back. I don't want the damned things, anyway."

"Wow, you were a lot more agreeable before you noticed her..." Nagi yawned, "Anyway, big guy! Hey, you hear me?"

The castle shook and groaned in response.

"Hey, hey, big guy, whisper!"

"Right, I sometimes forget how sensitive all you humans are..."

Sayo watched as a very frail looking old man slowly started to descend the stairs that Nagi had descended, previously. "What did he mean, humans?"

"I meant humans, young lady," The old man replied sternly, "As in the lot of you."

"Then what the hell does that make you?" Connor asked sharply.

The old man looked at Connor, who blanched and dipped into an apologetic bow. "You would do well to watch your tongue, young man. Though, honestly, I expected as much from you."

Sayo used a finger to push Connor back up straight.

"Wh-what was that?" He gulped.

"The big guy here is someone you should treat with respect. Trust me," Nagi stated.

"My name is..." A serious of strange tones and pitches came from the wrinkly old lips, causing Connor's ears to pop, "But as that may be difficult for you to repeat, you may call me Aristocles."

"Alright...Aristocles," He hesitated before asking, "What are you?"

"I am a god."

Connor nodded a little bit, pursing his lips. He glanced at Sayo, whose mouth was wide open. Then he just went for it.

"Is Heaven real?"

"Yes."

"What's my middle name?"

"Alexander."

"What's Sayo's bust size?" ("HEY!")

"Seventy-seven centimeters."

"What's the meaning of life?"

"There is none."

He thrust a hand behind his back, "How many fingers am I holding up?"

"One, two, one, four, three, three, one, three, four, two, four, four, four, four...Son, you can hold up four as many times as you like, but I'm gonna get it right every time.

"How many women have I slept with?"

"One."

"Oh my god..."

"Yes?" Aristocles yawned, apparently bored.

Wide-eyed and looking more than a little scared, Connor asked, "What should I do? How do I stop the Mother for good?"

"Son, first you need to understand what you're going up against. Once that's done, there's really nothing to it."

"What am I up against?"

Aristocles motioned for him to sit, which he immediately did. A stool had, thankfully, appeared out of nowhere, so this was easy. "This Mother that has everyone so worked up is truly quite an exciting deal, you see. It isn't very often that a new deity is born, but when it does happen it can have cataclysmic consequences. I've watched you for your entire life, Alexander, and I know that you are well aware of Fate and how human existence is essentially scripted and, thus, meaningless. You are, in simple terms, playing a role in a play. Myself, along with the rest of the deities, are the audience. Up until the time you saw me, you were following your script."

Since Aristocles had paused, Connor asked, "Am I not, now?"

"Indeed, you are not. Once again, in simple terms, you are now 'improvising'."

"What do you mean?"

"Remember to keep it on a small scale, Alexander, lest you confuse yourself. Assume that something has gone wrong in the play. An audience member has decided to storm the stage and start conversing with the actors, who are trying to do the play. The actors can't just ignore the newcomer on the stage. He is addressed and incorporated to the best of their abilities to salvage the play for the rest of the audience."

"Alright, I think I understand you."

"Very good, Alexander," Aristocles smiled, "Now imagine this. What if this audience member was to, say, kill one of the actors? What then?"

"Then I suppose the rest of the actors would try and kill the audience member."

"They could. Or they could do something else. Anything else. And that's why this Mother is such an interesting event, Herself. The Script holds all of everything's existence in it, but none of the deities, of the audience. She has perfect control of all of you, but none of us. We can intervene and then the Script must be altered. It needs to be rewritten to be as close to the original as possible. To get back on the right track, as you humans say. And the one who does this retooling goes by the name of Darkside. I prefer Atropos, but he does not. Though I digress. Let me give you an example of re-scripting. Say that there is a particular human who is Scripted to open a barbershop. A deity takes a liking to this particular human, and steps in and alters their life, no matter how. The barber then ends up becoming a manicurist, instead. All of the people who were supposed to have their hair cut by this particular barber in their lifetime will now have to get it cut by a different barber. This would require a large amount of rewriting, as you can surely imagine, and it's over a very small matter. Now imagine, instead, if an entire country were to be destroyed. The amount of damage that would cause to the Script is immense."

"People already have free will, so would it really be so bad if the Script didn't exist anymore?" Sayo asked.

"You are incorrect, young lady. Humans do not have free will, except for in circumstances when the Script is not being followed, which only happens when a deity intervenes. Right now, you and Alexander are not following the Script, because I am intervening in your lives. I am that audience member running up on your stage. I will not lie to you, should you have to make your own decisions, truly make choices in your life, their would be no real harm done. Fate is the only one disinclined to allow humans free will. She likes order, and without the Script it would be absolute anarchy, for Her."

"Sounds like a personal problem," Connor muttered, "But what you're telling me is that once the Mother comes back, she's basically calling the shots?"

"If and when she is reborn, she will be deified and therefore not controlled by the Script. Then, she will be that audience member on your stage. Likely with guns and idealism. Anyone and everyone will be at her mercy, and there is nothing that can be done to stop her."

"Well why don't you or one of the other deities help us?" Sayo asked, "If she's going to step in and mess things up, why won't one of you step in and stop her?"

Aristocles looked at her then asked, "Where's the fun in that?"

"E-Excuse me?"

"Perhaps I didn't make it very clear, before. Fate is the only one disinclined to allow humans free will. In fact, things will be infinitely more interesting once the Mother starts Her own personal war against the world and all of its 'evil'. Really, many of us are rooting for her to shake things up. Times of peace and minor squabbles are so boring."

"But you just said that we would all be at her mercy!"

"And you will be. Keep in mind, your lives do not matter. After all, you're just things meant to entertain."

Connor looked at Nagi, who didn't seem much too pleased with all that talk about being nothing, but he didn't say anything. Mana didn't appear to have anything to say, either. "Why are the two of you helping her!? Did you hear a word he just said!?"

Nagi met him dead in the eye and said, "I'm doing it for my son."

"And how do you figure that?"

"The Mother...She promised me that if I cooperated, she would spare him. She'll let him live."

"You're giving up before any of this has even happened!" Sayo shouted.

"Look, you two, we're not dealing with demons or thugs or terrorists or any of that! This is a god! See this old man, here? I can't even touch him. Don't think I haven't tried."

Aristocles admitted, "I could kill you a million times in half the time it takes you to blink. That is the difference between our kind."

"Then we have to stop Her from coming back!"

The god nodded, "That is certainly a viable option. Also, should you fail in that you could still very well kill Her. I might be able to wipe out your planet with a sneeze, but I have been around vastly longer than the Mother. She will not be accustomed to her newly attained powers. Though, you should understand, she will still be far more powerful than any human."

Nagi grunted, "Look, man, I'm going to do this for my kid. I know I haven't been there for him, but this is what I can do to make up for it. Or at least try to. If you can stop her, great. Do it. But I'm going to make sure that if you can't, I'm on Her side so my boy doesn't have to die for nothing. And as for what he just said," Nagi pointed at Aristocles with his thumb, "There are three things the Mother is planning to take when She gets back. The first thing is all this in here," He motioned all around them, "All of these bottled up souls. I guess they're like a near infinite magic source for her."

Connor nodded, recalling Serac's words; _"That is how souls get destroyed. When someone else takes them and uses them for their own power. Think for a moment, though. Can you imagine how powerful a spell would be if it were charged with an entire soul, rather than with a fragment? You can spend your entire life casting and barely scrape your own soul....."_

"The second thing she wants is immunity to magic, which just so happens to be found in Mahora, of all places."

"Bells, yeah. She's immune to magic."

"And the third, of course, is immunity to physical things. We've also learned that someone in Mahora possesses that particular talent. I know that it's a girl, and that she's a descendant of a Jesuit man, father Hubert Schiffer. Know him?" Connor shook his head no. "He's one of the priests of Hiroshima who survived the bombings during World War II. Guess prayer wasn't how he really made it out, but hey. However you want to spin it. The Angels are investigating the girl, and they believe that she has inherited the immunity, it's just dormant."

Connor frowned, "That's wonderful. Aside from the souls, it sounds like Mahora is going to be a hot spot."

"Looks like it. But if you want to stop the Mother, that's a good first step. Don't let her get Asuna, don't let her get Hiroshima's daughter. You can still kill her if you can do that much."

"What about the souls? Are you going to let me set them free?"

Nagi shook his head, "Sorry, I can't do that. That's the one thing I've been assigned to, and I can't risk Negi by blowing it. You're just gonna have to worry about the other two."

Aristocles laughed, declaring, "Oh, this is so exciting! I can't wait to see what happens. This is the kind of stuff we want to see!"

"Yeah? Well f-"

"Now, now," The god sealed up Connor's mouth with duct tape, "Watch your mouth, young man. I've decided that along with this information, I will help you a little more. This," He handed Connor one of the many bottles, "Is the Asakura girl you seek. Go, now, with all of your bravery and cunning, Alexander. Give us all a show we will never forget!"

And then they were sitting on a train, which was rattling to a stop. Both Connor and Sayo looked around, wide-eyed. Sure enough, there was Japanese writing. Connor ripped the tape from his lips and stomped to his feet. Sayo followed him out when the doors opened up. It looked to be later in the evening, just before it got dark. "Where are we going, Connor-sensei?"

"I need to go see science girl."

_-----Author's other note: Wow. I finally did it. We're back in Mahora. I can now write about everyone, again. And all was well in the world. For my three readers I still have, you guys are awesome. And more than a little patient. Thank you, very much, for choking that down. And now, here are the notes and things:_

_1. Father Hubert Schiffer is a real person, and he really survived the Hiroshima bombings. He was eight blocks from ground zero. There were seven other survivors, whom I understand were also priests. That is as far as the truth goes, concerning Father Schiffer, and the rest is my own creation. Connor needs to find out who Schiffer's descendant is that is supposed to have the dormant physical immunity._

_2. At this point, once this night passes, there will be three days until the Mother's 'due date'. If they can stop the pregnant woman from killing herself, than they are supposed to be able to prevent the rebirth._

_3. Negi and gang are still under the assumption that Matsuro (That baby from way back in the day) is Connor's, and that he abandoned her._

_4. Holy crap, remember when Asakura randomly showed up and surprised everyone right before we switched to Connor in Greece? Yeah, we finally get to go back to that._

_5. There are twelve Apostles to the Mother. Higure was one, Shiori is another, as is Akane. The others are still unknown._

_5. Connor doesn't know about Koremitsu!_

_And so, Life In A Bottle is at a point, now, where there are actually lots of interesting things going on! WHOA! I can't explain my happiness in words, so instead I'll do it by going to sleep. It's three in the morning. Thanks for reading.....-----_


	28. The Love I'd Thought I'd Won

_-----Author's note: This chapter is...almost as bad as the last one. Rather than dealing with higher beings and free will, we're going to deal with the soul and what it entails. It's really making me think about my existence and the nature of life and being. Yeah. ...Weird. I'm rapidly beginning to think of this chapter as my crowning achievement in fanfiction (For all that's worth, haha). You've been warned. Again, I love you all. I do not own Negima, but any other characters and ideas are my own. Enjoy...-----_

He growled in pain as the stiff palm connected with his shoulder, pushing him sideways.

She winced as her leg nearly buckled under the flat of the sword when it collided with the side of her knee.

The two combatants rolled with the momentum from the absorbed blows and went back to back, spinning around in a kind of angry dance. She tried to end their momentary cease-fire with an elbow to the ribs, but her target kept spinning away so that she could only just graze him from her current position. She pushed away, and he skipped back out of her immediate reach.

Neither paused to catch their breath or to allow the other as much. The fighters dashed back at each other, he throwing a punch. It was easily deflected, and allowed her to heave a kick up at his side. The man turned slightly, raising his own leg to block the attack. He then went through for a full rotation, swiping down low at his opponents ankles with his blade. A simple step back allowed the weapon to glide harmlessly below her foot, but she had to duck when it came back across the other way up by her head. When she popped back up she brought her knee up with her, straight into the man's chin. He stumbled backwards, swinging blindly to ward her off while he recovered.

-

Connor pounded on the metallic door with his free hand, the other hand jammed in his jacket, jealously guarding the bottle contained within.

"I don't understand why you want to see Hakase so bad, Connor-sensei," Sayo stated, pounding on the door beside him.

"She's doing me a big favor, Casper." Connor replied, "She's making me something."

"Two things wrong in the same breath," The scientist's voice poured out from an intercom above the door, "I've already finished the project you requested of me and, secondly, I did it for science, not you! For shame, Connor-sama."

'_S-Sama!?' _Sayo gasped internally.

"Sorry, baby," Connor replied sheepishly, "It's been rough since I've been gone."

'_B-BABY!?'_ Sayo's head started spinning. Metaphorically, of course.

"You know that was pretty rude of you. You ask me to do something for you, then you go gallivanting around overseas, right after. How are you going to make up for this?"

Grinning devilishly, Connor replied, "I can think of a few ways."

The lock clicked, and the door opened up. "Come on in, Connor-sama. I think we've got a lot to discuss."

-

The wind whistled softly around the abandoned food cart and the surrounding area. Connor wiped the water from his eyes just in time to see a chair speeding through the air at him like a rocket. He rolled away from it, then slashed up, down, and up through the following three. His enemy blitzed him before he could recapture his balance. He managed to avoid the flying kick she brought to the party, and she went far enough behind him that he was able to turn and face her square before she made it back to him. He dodged the first two punches, but the third caught him in the stomach. This emptied the wind from his lungs about as well as laxative cleans out, well, the rest of you. She followed up with another jab to the gut and then a roundhouse up against the side of his head. He bounced off of the pavement, leaving an impressive crack in his wake.

He flipped and landed on his feet, spitting out a wad of blood. Though he was breathing shallow, he had to press an attack and knew it. His jacket flared out menacingly when he took his turn attacking. His sword whistled dangerously as he let loose a frenzy of slashes, silver flashes matched only in speed by his enemy's dodges. Connor thrust his hand into his pocket and pulled out his pen, which he threw at his opponent from close-quarters. She barely dodged the writing-utensil-made-projectile, which stuck with a thud into the nearby food cart. Visibly thrown off balance, she had finally left an opening. Connor swung down low, grabbing onto her left leg and skimming the ground. She tried to stomp on him as he went, but it was too late. He went between her legs and flipped up, slamming both boots against her back and pushing off. She went face-first into the pavement, and he front-flipped to safety a few yards away.

"We having fun yet, princess?" He asked sarcastically, resting his sword on his shoulder.

-

Sayo eyeballed one of the many strange and dangerous-looking pieces of machinery to be found in the lab. This particular one looked like it might be a nostril cleaner, or some such oddity. ...She hoped it was for noses. The ghost didn't get long to ponder the device, however, because Connor and Hakase had begun talking, and this demanded all of her attention.

"Connor-sama, it's so good to see you again!" The soulless scientist cooed.

"Right back at ya, Glasses. I m-"

Sayo had to block out the rest of Connor's response to double-take Hakase. 'Cooed'!? What the heck was going on!? Hakase had no need for such silly things as cooing! When Sayo thought of cooing, the people it conjured up were Makie, Chizuru, or even Sakurako! Hakase? That brought up words like electron, biochemical, and technosexual! She had to stifle a gasp at that thought. What if...no, it couldn't be. They didn't treat each other this way because they had...

"Casper," Connor interrupted his partner's increasingly distressing thoughts, "You ok?"

"OF COURSE I AM!" Sayo yelled back, "I mean, of course I am. Never better!"

"Her temperature is rising," Hakase stated matter-of-factly, "Which is a phenomenon all its own. I believe she is not ok."

"Wait," Sayo balked, "You can SEE me!?"

"Yep."

"...And HEAR me!?"

"Indeed."

"Well how long has this been going on?" The flustered ghost asked.

Connor shrugged, "Does it really matter, right now?"

Hakase poked the rim of her glasses to indicate them and said, "I've modified these to pick up the traces of ectoplasm that ghosts are supposedly made of, or exude (I honestly haven't figured out which way it is, yet). It gives you a rough form, for me, but you're still mostly a blur. The cold streaks you leave make it difficult to pinpoint your exact location, when you move around at all. And, before you can ask, I'm wearing an earpiece which picks up the ultra-high frequency your voice is on."

"Are you making fun of my voice?" Sayo whimpered.

"No, Casper, no," Connor assured her, "She's basically saying you're like a gigantic dog-whistle. That might actually explain how dogs and some other animals can 'sense' ghosts, come to think of it."

Sayo dead-panned, "Gigantic, huh?" She turned around and started to float away, "Well I can see you double-teamers have some catching up to do, and I definitely don't want to be the third wheel or anything, so I'll just be going, now."

"Sweetheart, sweetheart, hold on a second," Connor jumped after her, catching the spirit's tail, "You're gonna want to be here, for this. I wouldn't exactly mind if you were here, either," He muttered weakly.

Completely moved by her teacher's sudden awkwardness at asking her to stay, Sayo agreed, "Yay! I didn't really want to leave, anyway. But tell me, I'm still not sure why we're here."

"Follow me, you two, and I'll explain," The scientist slowly started through the lab. "A little less than two weeks ago, Connor-sama came to me with a proposition. In exchange for his only possession of value, he wanted me to build something for him."

"Hang on," The ghost raised a hand and posed a question, "What possession was that?"

"My body," Connor sighed.

"Y-Your body!?"

"Indeed, his body is the one thing he had that interested me. And oh," Hakase smiled with a warmth that belied the devilish intentions she had, "How it interested me....."

"So-So when Aristocles said you'd slept with one woman he meant-" Sayo started to flail around, her fears from earlier resurfacing.

"What?" Connor asked, burying his face in his hands, "Geez, Casper, no. What is with you schoolgirls and sex?"

"Then...what?" She heaved a sigh of relief.

"The experiments!" Hakase swooned, eyelashes aflutter, "What with all of those silly human rights laws and somehow-influential groups for humane treatment of test subjects, it's incredibly difficult to find a willing body such as Connor-sama's! And with such reckless abandon he flung himself into test after test after magnificent test! The data I compiled with my own instruments and with my own senses far surpasses that I could find in any book! A true scientist must experience her work, and with Connor-sama's unabashed dedication to my cause and to science itself, I lived and breathed as a true scientist. Even if only for that one glorious day..."

"And you call him sama because..."

"His devotion to science is unlike that of any other I've ever witnessed. Such a man," She had to steady herself against the doorframe she was passing through, "Deserves to be called by nothing less."

'_Even though I was really doing all of it for me, and she knows it,'_ Connor chuckled to himself.

Blinking in surprise and moderate confusion, Sayo turned to her teacher, "Holy crackers, Connor-sensei, what did she do to you?"

Connor shuddered, "What didn't she do to me? My piss is still glowing from all of the friggin' nuka-col-"

"Copyright infringement!" Hakase halted her guinea pig.

"Right. Anyway, we'll not talk about what happened, back then. Or why I can't eat carrots, ever again." He paused to think for a second, then asked, "Did you just say 'holy crackers'?"

Ignoring Connor's silly question, Sayo asked, "And in return for his being your test subject, what did you make for him?"

Hakase resumed her walk, which brought them to their destination. A room apart from the rest of the lab, containing several tables which were covered by tarp and blankets. "Yes, nothing comes free in this world," She admitted, "Still, even that which Connor-sama asked of me was unprecedented outside of science-fiction, and would be an enormous step for the scientific world pending its success. Though even a failure will yield unheard of data, to be honest." She glanced at Connor, then smirked, "Naturally, it was nothing I couldn't handle. In fact, it was a piece of cake because this time, I had Chachamaru's schematics to go by. Minor aesthetic adaptions to her design, an already completed and successful project, was really a very simple matter. The biggest test and only unsure matter is the only matter that's left."

"Wait," Sayo said in a low voice, "You're not saying what I think you're saying, are you?"

The mad scientist casually made her way over to one of the tables in the room that was covered by a tarp. "Depends," She replied, jerking away the cover, "What do you think I'm saying?"

Lying on the table was a body, perfectly still and terribly cold. The body was a girl's, Sayo could tell. She was thinking ten-thousand thoughts a second as she went from the feet around the side. She was already dressed in a Mahora uniform, too. And when her eyes finally fell to the face, her heart would have stopped if it hadn't already done so a long time ago.

"I asked her to build me an android that looked exactly like Asakura," Connor whispered. He stared at the machine in a mixture of horror, sadness, and, perhaps worst of all, hope.

Sayo couldn't manage to look away when she asked, "You're going to put her soul in there?"

Hakase nodded once, "That's the plan. But something like this has never been attempted outside of fiction. Indeed, the nature of the soul and even its very existence is widely debated by people all around the world. That we actually have one right now...we're swimming in uncharted waters."

Sayo finally looked at Connor, wrenching her gaze from the face she never thought she'd see again, "What's the point of this?"

"The point is that she gets to live, again. She had her life taken away from her so early. If she decides she would rather not be alive, she can make the decision, herself. Don't tell me that people shouldn't get to decide when they die, either, because I've already decided that she died too early. The point is that she gets a second chance."

"Does this really count as a second chance?" The ghost frowned, "She wouldn't be alive, again..."

Connor agreed, "Maybe not in the sense that I'm alive, or Sunshine's alive. But if this works like we hope it will, she'll be completely aware of herself and the world, not to mention fully cognitive. With a human soul, we think she'll be just like she was. Able to learn, grow, feel, all that good stuff that makes life just so damn peachy."

Sayo was taking all of the information in, but was still skeptical, "What if it doesn't work? What if you hurt her?"

Hakase stepped in, "I'm fairly certain we won't damage the soul."

"Hell, like we could even if we wanted to." Connor said, "Remember what Serac told me about magic? Come on, Sayo. You use your soul as the fuel for magic, and you could do it nonstop all your life and never even scratch it. So we can safely assume that either the soul has a TON of energy, or that it's extremely durable. Either way, we won't be able to hurt it."

"Insofar as I am concerned," Hakase spoke, "My greatest question is whether or not the soul can be safely contained in the android, or if it will simply vanish once we try and insert it. If the soul is, indeed, released from the body upon death, can it be contained in a machine, which is something that never had life? It also brings up another question; Is the soul inextricably connected to life, or can it exist in this world apart from it?"

"It sounds like there are a lot of questions, here," Sayo groaned, "Now let me try and make it even worse."

"By all means," Connor grunted, "Let's have it."

"You said that you thought Asakura would be just like she was before she died, and that she would be capable of growth, learning, and feelings or emotions. That would mean you're assuming that the soul is responsible for all of those things, and not the body or, more specifically, the human brain. We have one big piece of evidence against us. Chachamaru."

The scientist grinned wickedly, "And how do you figure Chachamaru as evidence against us?"

"Well," Sayo began, "Chachamaru is always learning new things, and because of that she is always adapting and changing. She's growing, even if it's just little bits at a time. She's also very caring, and it seems to come naturally. Like when she takes care of those homeless kitties and feeds them. Was she ever programmed to do that?"

Hakase shook her head, "No, she was not."

"And the biggest piece of evidence that the soul is not responsible for any of those things you listed is that Chachamaru has developed feelings for Negi-sensei."

"Damn, Sayo," Connor marveled at the girl, shaking his head, "I can't believe how smart you sound, sometimes."

"That's all very well said, Sayo," Hakase golf-clapped for her classmate, "But in response I would say that I believe Chachamaru is developing these anomalous traits because she is developing a soul of her own."

"E-Excuse me?" Sayo made an 'eep' sound.

"Connor-sama and I spoke for a long while about the soul and what we knew of it and suspected of it before we began this endeavor. If it's true that we were created by a creator and designed to live a specific way and to do only specific things, then aren't we truly like the things we create, today? If I am a creator, and I create Chachamaru to live a specific way, then aren't I only mimicking my creator? So if I developed a soul over my life through my experiences, as a creation, then so could Chachamaru, another creation."

Sayo shook her head, "But then that would mean there is a time when a human doesn't have a soul. If you say that, then you're saying babies don't have souls. If a baby gets sick and dies, then they simply don't exist, anymore?"

"A good question!" Hakase crowed, "I'm proud to have you as a classmate, Sayo-san! You're absolutely correct, and have found something that Connor-sama and I have struggled with. If a baby dies before its soul has had a chance to grow and develop, then is it simply gone forever? We honestly don't know. Some Christians think that the soul is 'infused' into the fetus during one of the trimesters in pregnancy, but if it is simply 'infused' then it conflicts with our entire theory of soul development. So if our theory is correct, then the soul needs time to develop in order to exist after life. It's really very fascinating to think about." She paused for a second to see if Sayo would say anything. When she did not, Hakase concluded, "So we do not consider Chachamaru to be evidence against the soul's role in being. And, ironically, the arguer is the biggest evidence for it."

"Pardon?" Sayo tilted her head a little.

"Connor-sama?"

With a wry smile, Connor started, "Sayo, you're the biggest evidence that the soul can not only exist apart from life, like Glasses questioned earlier, but that it's responsible for everything that we consider human."

"Wh-What?"

"Think about it. You're dead. You don't have a body, anymore, which means you don't have a brain anymore. But look at you. You've learned to care about me and your classmates, you've learned a whole bunch about Socrates and you make me feel like I'm stupid in comparison, and you're always changing, even if by little bits." He smiled a little wider, "You prove that the soul is responsible for caring, learning, hurting, growing, feeling! All of it."

"...Wow," The ghost murmured. She looked from Connor to Hakase and back. After reflecting for several long moments, she said, "Let's do it. I want to talk to Asakura, again..."

-

"Isn't that just like Connor-san?" Negi Springfield, our very own boy wonder, sighed, shaking his head, "He gets in one hit and starts talking trash..."

"Pop his head off!" Asuna shouted, rooting for her classmate.

"KILL HIM!" Evangeline cheered.

Scowling, Ku Fei pushed herself back up and whipped around to face her opponent once again. Wordlessly, she vaulted back into combat. Connor pressed his own attack, staying in as close as possible. Their heated dance continued.

-

"Alright, let me see the soul," Hakase asked, doing her best to not drool in anticipation. It had really been killing her since Connor had come back.

The man in black obliged, finally revealing the round-bottomed-bottle that contained the slightly discolored air. "Here it is," He offered it to her, "This is the one Aristocles gave me."

"You don't think he would have given us the wrong one as a trick, do you?" Sayo asked sheepishly.

"I don't think so," Connor replied, "I mean, I hope not. There's no way I would have ever found the right one, myself."

Hakase accepted the bottle and said, "What, you mean you didn't hold each and every one until your heart just ached and you knew 'This is the one!'?"

"Keep cracking jokes, dearest. I'm still the guy who brought you an honest-to-goodness soul."

"And I'm still the girl that built you an exact replica android of the girl you accidentally killed, but you don't hear me bragging. Though it is extraordinary...Because of the Mother and her antiquated idea of perfection we're able to actually hold a soul, whereas we might never have had the chance, otherwise."

"Because the soul normally disappears, right?" Sayo asked the obvious question.

"Right," Connor groaned, "But she had a bunch of them stockpiled. Hopefully this is the only time anyone actually gets to handle one."

"You should have grabbed several more for me to study!" Hakase smacked Connor upside the head, "I might never get this kind of opportunity, again!"

"And you shouldn't!" Connor flinched away from her raised hand.

"Playing god is the greatest feeling there is!" The scientist declared, "But since you've never done it, I couldn't expect you to understand that. At any rate, let's see how we can do this. I wasn't sure what to expect as the container for the soul, but I'm a little surprised to see it's something as primitive as a glass bottle..."

"Life in a bottle," Sayo mused, "It sounds pretty, though."

"Sounds sad, if you ask me," Connor replied, "Do you think you can place it in there, alright? I mean, you're not gonna let it drift off or anything, right?"

Hakase shrugged, "I have no intention of letting it go, but I also have no idea what it is made of or how to go about moving it. If I uncork it, will it shoot out and be gone, or will it rest at the bottom like a liquid that I can pour? Or maybe it will be more like a mist, as it appears to be. Because it catches light, I would assume that there are some particles in it, which means it is a physical entity. Unless it's magical, in which case it might not be physical, at all. In fact, if it were physical, traces of it would have been found by now in autopsies, or seen leaving the body upon death. So while I can assure you I'll be taking every precaution, I won't lie to you. I can't say for sure what will happen."

"You're loving this, aren't you?" Connor snapped.

"Mother doesn't need to make a utopia, I'm already there!" The girl cheered. "Now watch closely, you two..." She instructed, waving the two over, "As you can see, there are no joints or imperfections in the skin at all. I've also done this upgrade for Chachamaru, so they both look as human as possible. Really, no one who doesn't know the difference will be able to tell that they're actually androids."

"Not counting the weird ear things you gave Chachamaru, right?"

"Correct. But the Asakura model does not have those. Her hair clips serve the same function as Chachamaru's ears."

"And look cute, too!" Sayo added.

Hakase nodded, "Which will only make her harder to identify as a fake. Her attractiveness will be her shield! But what I wanted you to see is this," The scientist moved aside just a little so that the two spectators could see what she was indicating. A cylindrical cavity interconnected with the rest of the machinery was what they saw. "This is the modified version of Chachamaru's central processing unit or, as you might know it, her CPU. Chachamaru's is able to function because of Evangeline's magic. If Evangeline ever stopped fueling Chachamaru, I would need to find an alternative magic source or she would stop running. The idea is basically the same, here. The CPU will take its energy to run from Asakura's soul, and should respond to her commands a lot like her old body would accept commands from her brain. At least, that's the general idea. It will probably be hard for her to do much of anything, at first, but she'll eventually get it all down."

"Hm, if that's the case, then, how would she ever die so she can move on to the afterlife?" Sayo posed yet another question.

"You're one to talk," Hakase replied, fidgeting with some dangerous-looking wiring, "But as far as we can see, she would not ever die. It's feasible that her soul would eventually run out of energy and she would cease to exist, that is, have no afterlife. But if what Connor-sama said is true, that wouldn't be for an astronomical amount of time. If her CPU is ever torn open, also, it's possible that the soul could leak out and she would, in a sense, die. In that scenario, she would go to the afterlife. We think. This entire train of thought brings about the age-old-question of immortality. Is this a way of achieving it? If we could find some way to capture the souls of others, could we transfer them into longer-lasting bodies indefinitely? If that body should begin to wear out, we could simply repeat the process and exist vastly longer than our normal, human bodies would allow. Also, it begs the question as to the development of the soul. Perhaps the soul has such immense lasting power because of life, itself. It is always learning and growing, and maybe that is why it has such energy. Connor-sama said that it was either immensely powerful, or incredibly durable. What if it's neither? What if it is only constantly replenishing itself through life experiences? Or, in Sayo's case, afterlife experiences? If that were true, simply by existing the soul cannot be destroyed because in existing, it draws its unfathomable longevity! The soul could be a self-preserving entity with no end!"

"Quit going off on tangents!" Connor barked, "I know it's science first, for you, but come on!"

"No," Hakase chuckled, "You're quite right. I've gone on long enough, and I'm ready to try my hand at God, once again. And don't act as though I've nothing invested in this." The scientist glanced over her shoulder, "I like to say I've sold my soul to science, but I've not sold my friend's. And Asakura was my friend."

Connor nodded once, "Sorry."

"Well, here we go..." The scientist ducked her head into the chest, along with the bottle. Connor and Sayo watched in horrified anticipation as the seconds clawed by just as slowly as they possibly could. And then... "Oops."

"OOPS!?" Both members of the audience wailed.

Hakase resurfaced, a little red, "I almost forgot to turn on the cameras! What a tragic mistake that would have been for all of science!" Connor fell flat on his face and Sayo went belly up. "Connor-sama, it's set up just behind me. Hit the record button on the screen. It will activate the surveillance cameras."

With an angry snort, the young man stalked over to the machine and did as he was told. He turned back around to find Hakase giving him the thumbs up, "It's all done," She said.

"What's all done? I just hit the stupid...Wait, you mean you did it?" He gasped.

"It wouldn't be right for a man to watch a young lady be reborn, now, would it?"

"What kind of bullshit is that!?"

"Connor-sensei!" Sayo pointed at the body on the table, "Look!"

The ghost, along with her frenzied teacher, stampeded over to the glass to stare. It brought tears to both sets of eyes when Asakura's eyelids fluttered open. Slowly, carefully, the bright blue eyes went from side to side, scanning the area she found herself in. They landed on Hakase.

"Ok," Her voice came from parted lips, "Did someone put something in my drink, or something?"

Sayo started bawling, and even Connor couldn't hold the tears back.

-

Ku Fei smashed through the side of the food cart and vanished into it.

"Give up yet, Sunshine?" Connor asked sincerely, wiping the blood from his neck. That last kick he took had knocked some out of his ear, and that troubled him a little bit.

A pot flew out of the ruined Chao Bao Zi, straight for Connor's head. With one mighty, flashy cleave of his sword, the pot split cleanly in two, one piece passing to his left and the other his right. Before he had even lowered his sword, Ku Fei was in front of him, pan at the ready.

"Oh, f-"

Thud!

-

Kazumi Asakura was, understandably, very confused at this point. She was lying on what she was pretty sure was an operating table, Hakase was leering down at her like a hungry wolf, Sayo and Connor were both crying, and she couldn't move any of her extremities. "Save me!" She screamed, "Hakase is going to experiment on me!" With a laugh, Hakase informed her that, no, she was not going to experiment on her. "Then why can't I move my arms?"

The scientist shushed her apparently successful project and demanded, "What's the last thing you remember?"

She hesitated before turning her head, with some difficulty, to look at Connor, "I..."

_Connor looked down into Asakura's eyes, putting a hand under her chin to tip her face up to meet his._

'_I-It's just like at the train...' She knew she was blushing. She knew he knew. It was a rough circle she was trapped in. She was embarrassed that she was about to kiss him, and she was even more embarrassed because he knew she was embarrassed._

_His hand slowly slid up and over her cheek, his eyes tracing the curves of her lips. He wanted to say something perfect, something that would forever imprint the moment into both of their minds. He hated that he wanted to. How old was she? Fourteen, or fifteen in the best case scenario. Was.....was that really such a big difference that he should feel bad about what he was wanting to do, to say? Maybe. _

"_Asakura," He whispered softly, wrapping his other arm around her and pulling her closer to him._

_She gasped a little, but didn't pull away. Her body seemed to have a will of its own. She found herself putting her arms around him, leaning into him. He had said her name again.....and it had sounded really, really good._

"_C-Connor...I..."_

_Before she could say what she wanted to say, Connor had brushed her hair back, and lowered his mouth to hers, easing into a soft kiss. Asakura closed her eyes tight, afraid to open them and see him. This was the most intimate thing she'd ever done, even if it was somewhat forced by circumstances...but...it was in this moment that she knew she really..._

"I...kissed Connor-sensei."

Sayo flushed crimson (Or at least the ghostly equivalent of crimson. It was more of a light peach color) upon hearing those words. She'd known what had happened, of course, but it seemed like such a long time ago. She'd forgotten all about it.

Asakura thought harder, narrowing her eyes.

_With an inhuman shriek, the girl haunting the East wing leapt into the air over the stacks of boxes, her cracked face illuminated by the flickering candle Chamo was standing beside. The light from the two pactios burst through the darkness, momentarily blinding all of them._

_The light from the magic faded away. Chamo hopped onto a spinning coin, laughing in triumph, "Sealed it in a coin, hot damn! You like that, ghost girl?" He asked, jumping up and down on the coin._

"There was a monster," She stated, "There was a flash of light, and then..."

"_Asakura-san, come on, we need to make sure she doesn't say anything she shouldn't in front of the others!" Negi made to follow after the rep, but Asakura didn't move. "What's wrong? Are you feeling alright?"_

"_A-Actually.....I think.....I'm g-getting sick....." Asakura mumbled, falling off of the box with a thud._

"I fell down," She whispered, "And I don't remember anything after that." She watched Connor wipe away a few tears while Sayo continued to cry like a baby whose candy had just been stolen. Twice. "You guys are scaring me! Why are you crying?"

Connor waved her off, shaking his head, "N-Not crying. I just uh...got like, splinters in my eyes. You know, metal ones. From...Hakase's crazy experiments, and...stuff," He cleared his throat, looking away.

"And w-w-we were cutting o-onioooooons," Sayo wept. And that was about it, for her. She dove in and wrapped her arms around her sorely missed friend.

Asakura grimaced, but laughed a little, anyway. The sound sent chills up and down Connor's spine, "I'd hug you back if I could, but my arms aren't working, right now. ...Yeah, seriously guys, what happened? Did I hurt my spine or something when I fell? I'm gonna get better, right?"

And this is where a personal dilemma came into play for Connor. It was one that had passed fleetingly through his head, but was always overshadowed by doubt or the sad possibility of failure before even making it to this point. Should he tell her what happened, or should he lie? Surely she would eventually find out, the rational part of him argued. Androids didn't need to eat, he didn't know if she'd sleep normally or even at all, and sooner or later she'd get a cut or a scrape that didn't bleed. But she didn't know what had happened, the recklessly hopeful part of him countered. She would eventually find out she was in a machine, but she didn't ever need to know it was his fault. He could tell her anything. He could get the others to go along with whatever he said. Maybe things could go back to the way they were, before. ...He could tell her anything.

"Well, Connor-sensei?" Hakase glanced at her teacher through the corner of her eye, "Would you like to tell her what happened, or should I?"

"Could you two give us a few minutes alone, please?" He asked in response.

Sayo looked at him, her eyes begging 'Whyyy!?', but she sucked it up and released Asakura. Slowly, Hakase led Sayo out of the room and into another one a ways away. To make our desperate to eavesdrop ghost even more distressed, the scientist went and closed the door. The nerve! "I really want to hear what they're talking about," She confided.

"Then shut up and watch," Hakase demanded, pointing at a series of monitors tucked back in the corner of the room. One of the screens was of the room that they had just been in. "I didn't have Connor-sama turn the surveillance on for nothing, you know."

"You mean you planned this all along?" Sayo gasped. She was easily stunned, you see.

"Of course I did. Connor-sama has a great flaw, and that is that he cares about other people and their opinions too much. He wants them to think of him as a hero, even though he says otherwise."

Sayo groaned as she agreed, inside. She probably understood that better than most other people.

"I believe," Hakase said quietly, as though she were deep in thought, "That he wants to lie to her about what happened. And I'm going to give him the chance to do just that."

"But why?" Sayo asked, "We should just tell her! She'll understand, I know it! Um, and maybe if her arms and legs worked, she'd be more understanding..."

"Oh," Hakase shrugged, "I'll activate them, shortly. I just felt that it would be easier for him to speak with her if she couldn't run away. Or, say, throttle him."

"You mean you planned that, too!?"

"I surely did," Hakase laughed evilly, "Seeing how both of them handles this situation is very important to my research. A subject like Asakura will probably never come around in my lifetime, again, and Connor-sama is also a unique case, being an otherworlder. This is all very important..."

"You're evil..." Sayo wailed.

-

Connor grabbed the stool from the desk with the computer on it and dragged it over to Asakura's table. He set it by her head, then gently lowered himself onto it. She watched him in silence as he did all this, though her uneasiness continued to grow and became insistent that she panic. He still got the first words off, however. "It's good to see you, again."

"Oh, God," She started, "It's just like in one of those tv shows where you wake up and you've been in a coma for ten years! I can't move because my muscles have all turned to pudding!"

Connor smiled warmly, reaching out to touch her cheek. He stopped halfway there, though, and pulled back. "Not quite, Blaze."

"Then what happened?" Asakura demanded. She met his oddly deep gaze with a frightened one of her own.

"I just...I'm sorry," He lowered his head, "I'm sorry. I want you to know that you're going to be fine. You'll be up and moving before you know it. And that I wish...that I wish that I'd never met you." Asakura furrowed her brow and pursed her lips. "You make me feel these...things, that I don't want to feel. You make me care more than I want to care, and I don't even know why. I'm so, so sorry that I met you, and that we started to get close."

"Hey, stop that-"

Connor cut her off, "I need to tell you that I'm sorry I didn't run the other way. You just...I don't know, appealed to me, so I went with it. I was only thinking about myself the times I was with you, and how I felt. I want you to know that more than anything I'm sorry for the things I said and did to you, when I was thinking about me. If I could take it all back, I would do it in a heartbeat. I don't expect you to ever forgive me. I don't even want you to, anymore. I just want you to know that I'm sorry for what I did to you." He rose from the stool and crossed the room for the door, "I'm done, Satomi," He announced, "You do the rest."

"Hey, wait!" Asakura called after him, watching his back as he walked away, "Sorry for what!?"

-

"So he knew we were watching..." Sayo gasped, yet again. _'I wonder if he was apologizing to Asakura...or to Daisy?'_

"I wonder," Hakase sighed, standing up. "It seems Connor-sama is not as brave as we thought."

The ghost tried to smile when she said, "He's stronger than you thought, though. He didn't lie to her."

"Maybe. Awfully funny, though, he apologized so many times for being selfish, then only got what he wanted out of their entire conversation," The scientist brushed by Connor as he entered the room, "Rather hypocritical."

Connor dropped into the chair Hakase had just been sitting in, burying his face in his hands.

Sayo laid a hand on his shoulder and whispered, "It'll be ok,"

He nodded weakly, then gave her a pat on the head. They were quiet while Hakase explained to Asakura what was going on, and what had happened. The paparazzi refused to accept any of it as truth, of course, until the scientist opened up her chest.

Over the sound of her screaming, Connor once again rose and made to leave, "I'm going to have a talk with Serac. After that, I've got one more bridge to burn."

-

Connor back-flipped, blood shooting from his mouth and nose before he collided with the merciless ground. He rolled away, retching up a small wad of bright red as he did. It had been a long time since he'd been beaten up so bad, or at least it felt like it. But even though his muscles were sore and his face was bruised, his heart ached just as badly as any other part of him. He wanted to stay down. It's what he needed to do. He had to lose. It was for the best. But that stupid beating muscle in his chest refused to allow him. Because no matter how much he hurt, it hurt more.

No sooner had he gotten back to his feet did Ku Fei take to the air, yet another flying kick coming his way. Connor caught her by the ankle and spun her once, throwing her and her momentum safely away. Or at least, he thought. She caught hold of a lamppost and swung back towards him, catching him in the chest. Once again thrown to the ground, he had the same problem. Stay down, stay down, his head reasoned with him. Get up, get up, his stupid heart urged.

He pushed to a knee, raising an arm to catch her downwards chop. The ground cracked under the sudden blow, but Connor staved her off, once again climbing to his feet. _'I need to get in close,'_ He thought, staggering towards her dangerously. The man in black regained his form and quickly swept in on the girl, but she had been ready for this. With an unfortunately well-timed sidestep and tilt, she managed to mislead her worn down enemy and trip him up. A quick spin and she was behind the stumbling fighter. An elbow dug itself deep into Connor's back. He dropped his sword and dove forward. Again, his body begged him to give up. His heart told the rest of him to shut up, and he managed to push himself up onto all fours.

"This over," Ku Fei declared, picking up Connor's sword, "It been over for awhile."

"Like hell this is over," Connor grunted. He managed to get back on both feet and turn around. Through blurry eyes, he squinted at his Sunshine. He could barely make out her pretty eyes through his bloodshot ones, and he couldn't smell her pretty smell over his own blood. "I've got you right where I want you..." He managed a sort of half-smile when he outstretched his arms.

Ku Fei jammed the sword into the ground.

"Come to papa."

The Chinese girl did as she was beckoned, flying at him for one last go. He didn't have it in him to get up, another time. She could see it in his face, even if he hid it by smiling. She drove her fist deep into his stomach, but he stood fast and threw his arms around her neck. With all of the will he had in him, he pulled her close and hugged her. He need to be in close, and he couldn't get closer than this. She punched him again, then again, and then again. Each thrust of her fist forced out a ragged breath from Connor, who hung on even when his legs gave out. The two slumped lower to the ground, sagging to their knees. She punched him another time, but couldn't do it again, after.

Negi watched the two, resting on their knees and leaning against each other. Ku Fei was crying, he could tell. Connor's head was on her shoulder, but it looked like he was limp and unable to do much. If he was crying, the boy had no idea. That very thought scared him, he realized. Connor was supposed to be strong and manly, but there he was. Defeated and broken. He knew what this fight was about and what was on the line. How hard he had fought showed, at least to Negi, how much he cared. His reverie was broken when Ku Fei, still crying, climbed to her feet and started running. Connor fell to his side and lay there. Asuna ran after her friend and, after a regretful glance at Connor, Negi followed suit.

Evangeline and Chachamaru slowly walked over to the downed man, stopping right next to him. With an air of indifference, tinged with slight curiosity, the vampire asked, "What did you say to her?"

His eyes dulled and his heart cracked, Connor whispered back, "That...no matter what happened...I didn't love her, either way."

Evangeline nodded, "I thought it was something like that." She turned and began to walk away, "Come, Chachamaru. I've had enough excitement for today. Let's leave this one to his affairs."

"Yes, master."

-

Asuna rose from the couch when a knock at the door interrupted the momentary silence that had fallen over the group. Setsuna and Negi both moved to do the same, Negi cutting in front of his student to be the one to answer the door.

Everyone stood motionless for several seconds as they stared at the person outside in the hall, a big grin plastered on their pretty face. A shorter person was beside her, but that person went largely unnoticed at the moment.

"A-A-As-A....." Negi stammered, backing away in uncertainty. If it was Akane, she had certainly picked the right form to pose as for a crippling effect.

"Asakura-san.....?" Asuna whispered, eyes as wide as saucers.

Konoka shot up, turning to look.

"Hey, guys!" Asakura continued to smile broadly, "Glad to see me, huh?"

"Now," The shorter person, Hakase, stepped up and raised both hands, "Nobody have a stroke or anything, ok?"

"Wh-What going on?" Ku Fei asked, staring at her dead friend in horror.

"Is this some kind of distasteful joke?" Setsuna gave Hakase a sharp look.

Negi threw himself at his long-lost student, wrapping his arms around her waist, "ASAKURA-SAN!" He shouted in glee.

Asakura patted the boy on the head, "Yeah, that's cool. I guess it's ok to be intimate with your students, now, Negi-kun?"

The usually easy-to-fluster boy ignored her, and continued to hug her.

"Ok, let's have the explanation for the stupid people!" Asuna barked, raising her hand, "What the hell's going on!?"

_Twenty minutes later..._

"Maybe I wasn't clear..." Asuna groaned, "I said the explanation for the stupid people!"

"A long story short," Hakase frowned, "Is that this android, here, is for all intents and purposes, Kazumi Asakura. Her soul is inside of it, and that is what makes her Asakura. Not a body."

"But how did you manage to get a hold of her soul?" Konoka asked, "How did you find out where it was, after you found out that the rest of them were being stockpiled?"

Hakase flashed a devilish grin, "I have contacts all around the world. How could I not locate her?"

"How did you get the soul, though? I mean, surely it was heavily guarded!" Negi, still wrapped around Asakura's waist, asked.

Hakase agreed, "Yeah, about that...Hm, what's the best way to say this? Let's try...Your dad was the one guarding them. He's working for the Mother. ...Yeah, I think that was good."

The windows nearly blew out of the room at everyone's shouting about this.

"Geez, geez!" The scientist tried to shut everyone up, "No wonder I don't spend time with you all outside of school. Thank you for reminding me. Chachamaru!" Hakase called in the direction of the door. It opened up, and the completely repaired Chachamaru entered, "I've got some tests to run on your sister, so you take care of anything here that needs taking care of, alright?"

"Understood," The android bowed.

Asakura and Hakase stood up to leave, but Negi tried to stop them, "Asakura-san, wait! There's a lot I want to talk to you about! You too, Hakase-san! About my father, and the Mother, and...and this whole thing!"

Asakura shook her head, "Sorry, kiddo, but I don't want to talk to you about any of it. Maybe for you this is big news and I get you're real happy to see me, but...I'm not ready to..."

"N-No, it's ok," Negi said, suddenly ashamed, "I'm sorry. Please, go ahead."

"She'll be back in school before you know it," Hakase tipped her head as she left the room, "And that's a promise."

Asakura followed her once-classmate now mother, of a kind. Imagine her surprise when down the hall came Connor, followed by Sayo. The four passed each other in complete silence, Connor staring straight ahead like there was no one else to be seen, at all. Scorned, she returned the favor. She did notice, however, that the ghost stopped following the man and began to follow them. Once they were outside, Asakura asked, "Why are you following us, now?"

"Connor-sensei had a talk with someone," Sayo replied quietly, thinking of Serac.

"Oh? So what?"

"I did not like the talk."

-

Connor threw the door open, looking around the room. Boy Wonder, lesbians one and two, Red, Forehead, Robot, Vampire, Sunshine! He thrust a finger at her, "Do you forgive me?"

"No!" Ku Fei yelled, pointing back at him, "You a liar and you abandon family and people who care about you!"

"What if I said pretty-please?"

"No!" The girl maintained, "You hurt all of us! You not a good person!"

"Well, that's not a very nice thing to say," Connor mumbled, "Alright, then! I challenge you to a fight. If I win, you forgive me and let bygones be bygones and we'll all get on with our lives. If I lose, I will never bother you again. I'll use the blunt edge of my sword and no magic. What do you say?"

"If you not use magic, I beat you for sure."

"She's right," Setsuna said, "That kind of handicap might make the fight safer, but it also means you have no chance of winning."

With a shrug of indifference, Connor countered, "Then since magic is my strongest point, we'll take away yours."

"No grappling attacks," Negi said.

"Fine. What do you say to that, then, Sunshine? Do we have a deal?"

The girl hesitated, but knew Connor had gotten her. She couldn't turn down a challenge to fight. To be quite honest, this suited her well. Warriors should settle their differences on the battlefield. "Is fine. We fight at the Chao Bao Zi. Since Chao gone...it not matter, anymore."

"Lead the way," Connor motioned to the door, following after the people who filed out in front of him. All he'd need to do was stay in close and he'd have a chance to win, since she couldn't grab. ...But winning wasn't the objective, so that kind of thinking had no place in his mind.

Setsuna, still at Konoka and Yue's bedsides, thought to herself, _'What a night this turned out to be. ...Koremitsu sure takes long showers...'_

-

Alone, defeated, and cold, Connor lay on the ground where Ku Fei had left him. Where everyone had left him. Sayo was gone. Off who knows where. Ku Fei was gone, just like he'd planned even though he had tried his hardest to stop it. He'd severed ties with Asakura just as soon as she was able to hear it, even though it was the last thing he wanted to do. Hakase had displayed her disappointment in him, as well, which is something even he was surprised by. Even Negi had left him on the ground. For the first time in a long time, there was no one around to lower him a hand and help him up off of the ground. Even if he would choose to brush that hand away like a stubborn mule, he really wished it were there.

"Setsuna told me you'd be out here. Man, you look like you've seen better days," A familiar voice declared. Connor opened his eyes, then his lips parted just barely in wonder. He stared deep into the emerald eyes above him, that nostalgic little smirk, "Let me help you up," Koremitsu offered his hand.

_-----Author's other note: Try as I might, I couldn't find a suitable way to break this chapter up into two, and so we have another ridiculously long chapter. But it bodes extremely well for the future, because I made it all the way back to Mahora!_

_Thank you to Hydriatus for reading most of this, beforehand, and giving me his thoughts. I hit a roadblock a little while back, and needed outside input. He was ready and willing, and I thank him for that._

_I wonder how many of you saw the whole thing about the android coming. There were times when I thought it was super obvious, then times when I thought it was not. At any rate, it opens up lots of room for story, and should be really interesting. The next chapter will be vastly shorter, I imagine. Unless someone makes some random suggestion I fall in love with that is not short. Or something. Anyway, thank you for reading...----- _


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